‘Pradhan Mantri Hafta Vasuli Yojana’: Cong’s swipe over electoral bonds | Politics News

Jairam Ramesh

“These are just key examples: a total of 21 firms who have faced investigations from the CBI, ED, or IT, have donated electoral bonds after the fact,” Ramesh stated. | Photo: Wikipedia


Stepping up its assault on the Centre over the electoral bonds challenge, the Congress on Monday accused the Modi authorities of “hafta vasuli” (extortion) and claimed {that a} whole of 21 companies which have confronted investigations from the CBI, ED, or IT, have donated via electoral bonds.


Congress normal secretary Jairam Ramesh stated that with every passing day, extra examples emerge on the true depths of the “electoral bond scam”.


“Today, we zoom in on the ‘Pradhan Mantri Hafta Vasuli Yojana’, the second of the four channels of corruption in the Electoral Bond Scam: 1.Chanda Do, Dhandha Lo 2.Hafta Vasuli,” Ramesh stated in a submit on X.

 


On November 10, 2022, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested P Sarath Chandra Reddy, the director of Aurobindo Pharma, in reference to its cash laundering case pertaining to alleged irregularities within the Delhi authorities’s liquor coverage and 5 days later, on November 15, Aurobindo Pharma donated electoral bonds value Rs 5 crore, he claimed.


“Navayuga Engineering Company Limited bought electoral bonds worth Rs 30 crore in April 2019, six months after it was raided by the Income Tax Department in October 2018,” he stated.

In the early hours of December 7, 2023, three items of Rungta Sons Pvt. Ltd. in Ramgarh have been raided by the Income Tax Department and on January 11, 2024, the corporate bought 50 electoral bonds value Rs 1 crore every, Ramesh alleged

Before this, the agency solely donated in April 2021, he identified.


“Hyderabad-based Shirdi Sai Electricals Limited faced income tax raids on December 20 2023. On January 11, 2024, the company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 40 crore,” the Congress chief claimed.


“In November 2023, Income Tax officials raided an employee of Reddy’s Labs, for alleged cash transactions. Just after the raids, the company purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 31 crore, followed by Rs 21 crore in November 2023, and Rs 10 crore in January 2024, adding up to Rs 84 crore,” he alleged.


“These are just key examples: a total of 21 firms who have faced investigations from the CBI, ED, or IT, have donated electoral bonds after the fact,” Ramesh stated.


He additionally alleged that the federal government indulged in ‘Theka Lo, Rishvat Do’ (get enterprise, at a bribe) and thru ‘Farzi Company’ (shell firms).


“Remember, the IT Department and the ED implement the Pradhan Mantri Hafta Vasuli Yojana. The State Bank of India implements the #ElectoralBondScam. And at the end of the day, all of these institutions report to the same person: the Finance Minister,” Ramesh alleged.


The Congress on Sunday charged the federal government with partaking in “quid pro quo” for receiving electoral bonds and “conspiring” to route black cash into the BJP’s accounts via the scheme.


Ramesh had stated Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have been answerable on the electoral bond “scam”.


Following a Supreme Court directive, the State Bank of India (SBI), which was the authorised vendor of electoral bonds, shared the information with the ballot panel on March 12.


The SBI stated a complete of twenty-two,217 electoral bonds of various denominations have been bought by donors between April 1, 2019, and February 15 this yr, out of which 22,030 have been redeemed by political events.

(Only the headline and movie of this report could have been reworked by the Business Standard workers; the remainder of the content material is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

First Published: Mar 18 2024 | 11:16 AM IST