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Meet the top 10 purchasers of electoral bonds: Lottery, infrastructure, a mining giant

Who Bought the Bonds? Top Donors of Electoral Bonds Revealed. Based on SBI data from April 2019, published today by the Election Commission

Hours after the Election Commission published details of electoral bonds, as submitted by the State Bank of India, we now know the top 10 purchasers of electoral bonds from April 2019.

#1 on the list is Future Gaming and Hotel Services Ltd with a whopping Rs 1,368 crore worth of electoral bonds. Owned by Santiago Martin, the lottery company is headquartered in Coimbatore. It’s also the sole distributor of the paper lottery organised in Sikkim and Nagaland. Its bonds have been listed as Future Gaming and Hotel Service PR, Future Gaming and Hotel Services Pvt Ltd, and Future Gaming and Hotel Services Private Ltd in the EC data.

The company and Martin have been the subjects of investigations by the Enforcement Directorate. Martin was also named in a chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation in a money laundering case. Last year, the ED froze assets worth over Rs 450 crore. Just last week, the ED conducted searches at the home of Martin’s son-in-law in connection with a money laundering investigation.

#2 is the Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd which purchased electoral bonds of Rs 966 crore. The Megha Group was set up in 1986 by PP Reddy. Both Reddy and his nephew PV Krishna Reddy are reportedly “close” to Telangana Chief Minister KCR. Read Newslaundry’s piece from 2019 for more.

#3 is Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited, headquartered in Maharashtra and donating a total of Rs 410 crore through electoral bonds. One of its directors is also director at a host of companies owned by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries.

#4 on the list is mining giant Vedanta Limited, founded by businessman Anil Agarwal and headquartered in Mumbai. The conglomerate is no stranger to controversy, including allegations of debt and multiple conflicts over its subversion of environmental regulation. Last year, it announced the “demerger” of its businesses.

Regardless, it purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 399 crore.

#5 is Haldia Energy Limited, purchasing electoral bonds worth Rs 375 crore. Incorporated in 1994, it’s wholly owned by CESC Ltd, part of the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group. It operates a thermal power plant at West Bengal’s Haldia to “cater [to] the growing power demand of the city of Kolkata and its suburbs”.

Last year, Al Jazeera reported that the Narendra Modi government allowed RP-Sanjiv Goenka to “bypass competitive processes to corner large coal reserves”.

#6 on the list is Essel Mining and Industries Ltd, which purchased a total of Rs 224.5 crore through electoral bonds.

Part of the Aditya Birla Group, it is among the country’s largest iron ore mining companies and producer of noble ferro alloys. In 2022, the company had written to the Madhya Pradesh government expressing concerns about threats of violence as it tried to execute its mining project in Buxwaha forest, nearly 200 km from Sanchi. In 2014, an expert panel tasked with investigating mining violations in Odisha held the firm guilty of illegal mining in the state’s forest areas.

#7 is Western UP Power Transmission Company Ltd, in which Megha group has controlling shareholding, purchased bonds worth Rs 220 crore. Including Megha Engineering, the group has purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 1,186 crore.

#8 on the list is Keventer Foodpark Infra Limited, which has purchased electoral bonds to the tune of Rs 195 crore since 2019. The Kolkata-based firm is in the food processing sector and exports pulp and agricultural products.

#9 is MKJ Enterprises Limited, headquartered in Kolkata, dealing in steel, and purchasing Rs 180 crore through electoral bonds. Its chairman and managing director is Mahendra Kumar Jalan – also a director with some Keventer companies, which ties in nicely with entry #7.

#10 is Madanlal Ltd, which purchased bonds to the tune of Rs 185.5 crore. The company is part of MKJ Group and Keventer Group of companies. The company is engaged in purchase and sale of securities and real estate sector.

The EC released SBI’s data on electoral bonds just before 8 pm today in the form of two files, one containing names of “purchasers” of electoral bonds and the other containing names of the political parties that encashed the bonds.

We had earlier reported an ostensible pattern between central agency action and Rs 335 crore in donations to the BJP by 30 companies during the last five financial years. We later found 11 other companies which donated Rs 62.27 crore to the BJP from 2016-17 to 2022-23, and faced central agency action during the same period.

Check out the full series here.

This report is part of a collaborative project involving three news organisations – Newslaundry, Scroll, The News Minute – and freelance journalists.

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One Comment

  1. QUESTION IS – HOW CAN IN LA-LA BANANA REPUBLIC OF HINDOOSTHAN – COULD SUCH A LAW BE PASSED ?

    NETAS IN LOK SABHA ARE ILLITERATE SCUM ! THEY WILL PASS ANY LAW !

    COMPANIES ACT HAS LIMITS ON LOANS,INVESTMENTS,DONATIONS – BUT NOT ON EB ! HOW COULD SUCH A LAW BE PASSED ?

    INDIAN LAWS HAVE NO SANCTITY AS THEY ARE PASSED BY CHORS AND ILLITERATES ! THEY WILL PASS ANY LAW !

    THEREFORE,INDIAN LAWS SHOULD NOT BE FOLLOWED ! THEY ARE GARBAGE !

    IF EB NAMES ARE DISCLOSED – THEN SO SHOULD THE NAMES OF THE DONORS, AT ALL HINDOO TEMPLES IN CASH AND IN KIND ! dindoooohindoo

    ONLY A FOOL WILL THINK THAT NON CASH PAYMENT FOR EB BONDS KEEPS NAME OF DONORS SECRET ! THE BONDS HAVE AN INVISIBLE CODE LIKE ON THE US 100 USD LINCOLN BILL !

    DISCLOSING NAME OF BUYER OF EB IS OF NO USE !

    A BUYS EB OF 1000 CRORES AND DISCLOSES HIS NAME AND GIVES BOND TO BJP

    BUT A WAS PAID RS 1100 CRORES, IN CASH, BY B, TO BUY THE BONDS !

    SOLUTION IS TO STATE FUNDING OF “ALL PARTIES”,WITH 0.1% PER CENT VOTE SHARE ! dindooohindoo

    BOOK OF GENESIS PART 1

    VERSE 1 – WHY WAS EB STARTED ?

    NOT TO STOP BLACK MOENY ! 20000 OR EVEN 2000000 CRORES IS A TADPOLE IN A SEA !

    AS I SAID `- BUYER OF EB IS A SHELL COMPANY !

    EB IS A BEARER NBOND AND THEN THAT BOND IS GIVEN TO ADA – WHO GIVES IT TO BJP WHO ENCASHES IN IN 2 WEEKS ! ADA IS ON RECORDS ! END OF STORY !

    SO THIS IS ALL BULLSHIT !

    THE REAL REASONS ARE 2 !

    1- BANIA JAIN PANDIT PARTY – BJP – WANTED TO GIVE A TAX REBATE ON A BRIBE ! SO CAME THIS SCHEME !

    ADA GIVES RS 10000 CRORES TO BJP ! ADA USES A SHELL COMPANY WITH A LOSS IN INDIA TO BUY THE BREARR BONDS ! NOW THAT SHELL COMPANY HAS RS 10000 CRORES TAX ASSESSED LOSS. THE SHELL GIVES THE BOND TO BJP AND BJ ENCASHES THE SAME.

    AFTER 3 YEARS ADA ACQUIRES THE SHELL AND SETS OFF THE TAX LOSS – SO A GAIN OF RS 3000 CRORES !

    THE 2ND REASON !

    BANIA SCUM PARTY REALISED IN 2018 THAT THE DAYS OF USING BHANG AND MOON SHINE TO BUY VOTES ARE OVER ! NOW YOU NEED A MEDIA PROPOGANDA BLITZ ! FOR THAT YOU NEED BILLIONS IN USD ! IN WHITE !

    AS CEC WILL CHECK THE NEWS ADVERTS AND ASK THE MEDIA FOR THR SOURCE OF FUNDS ! FOR BANIA BJP TO PAY BANIA ZEE – BANIO BJP NEEDS WHITE MONEY ! BUT THE BJP WANTS A SCHEME WHERE THE WHITE MONEY COMES ONLY TO BJP -SO THEY CHOOSE SBI WHICH REPORTS CONGRESS FUNDINGG TO BJP – AND TEHN BJP SENDS THE ED AND DRI !~

    SO CONRESS HAS NO MEDIA POWER ! CONGI USES SOCIAL MEDIA – WHCIH IS USELESS !

    NOW COMES THE POLL RALLIES ! FOR THAT CASH IS REQUIRED NOT WHITE MONEY ! THERE CHAIWALA USED DEMO TO WIPE OUT THE CASH AND WILL SCRAP THE RS 2000 NOTE SOON !

    —————————————————————————————————–

    BUT THE MOST IMPORTANT REASON WHICH EVEN THE JUDGES OF HE APEX COURT MISSED – AS THEY DO NOT KNOW THE VERMINS THAT EXIST IN THE BJP !

    ADA USES A LOSS MAKING SHELL ,TO BUY 10000 CRORES BONDS .SHELL COMPANT GIVES BONDS TO ADA WHO GIVES IT TO BJP

    NOW THE BIONDS ARE ENCASHED BY BJP

    ADA BUYS SHELL IN MERGER,AFTER 2 YEARS ,AND SO,CLAIMS THE TAX REBATE,ON RS 10000 CRORES

    NOW BJP NEEDS 7000 CRORES IN WHIITE,AND CASH IN BLACK, OF RS 3500 CRORES FOR 2024 POLLS

    SO BJP USES THE EXCESS OF RS 3000 CRORES IN EB (IN WHITE), TO CONVERT THE RS 3500 CRORES IN BLACK INTO WHITE !

    SO BJP GIVES THE RS 3500 CRORES IN CASH TO ADA FOR THE EXCESSS RS 3000 CRORES OF EB (AND BJP KEEPS THE EXCESS RS 3000 CRORES)

    BIP HAS WASHED ITS CASH AT THE RATE OF 12% – AND ADA WILL COMVERT THE RS 3500 CRORES INTO WHTE AT NIL COST USING HIS “AGRI BUSINESS”,AND THEN,REPEAT THE EB AGAIN AND AGAIN !

    SO ADA PAYS 10000 CRORES – GETS TAX GAIN OF 3000 CRORES + 3500 CRORES IN CASH !
    WIN WIN ! FOR BJP AND ADA ! THE BALANCE 3500 CRORES , ADA WILL DO 1O MORE CHURNS OF EB TO RECOVER RS 3500 CRORES ! SO ADA MAKES 3000 CRORES TAX GAIN OR NIL NET INVESTMENT !

    HOW DID THE SHELL GET 10000 CRORES ? FROM A MAURITIUS FUND AS A SHARE CAPITAL “ENTRY” ! WHO OWNS THE FUND ? THE “REAL OWNER”

    VEDIC MATHS !

    THAT IS THE GAME ! REAL GAME !

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