Bhubaneswar: After the Supreme Court struck down the electoral bond scheme, donations received by the BJP jumped over 68 per cent during 2024-25, while other political parties, including Odisha’s Biju Janata Dal (BJD) reported sharp decline in their receipts.
The BJP received Rs 6,654.93 crore in donations during the 2024-25 financial year, according to a report submitted by the Lotus party to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on the contributions it received in the last fiscal. Now available on the Commission’s website, the report lists only contributions above Rs 20,000. As per the report, the donations were received between April 1, 2024 and March 30, 2025.
The BJP, which received donations worth Rs 3,967 crore in the previous fiscal, posted a 68 per cent jump this time.
While around 40 per cent of donations to the BJP came from electoral trusts, the remaining donations were received from companies and individuals. An electoral trust is set up by companies to distribute contributions received from companies and individuals to political parties.
Several BJP leaders also made individual donations. While Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan donated Rs one lakh, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi contributed Rs five lakh.
Similarly, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma donated Rs 3 lakh and Assam minister Pijush Hazarika gave Rs 2.75 lakh.
Other political parties reported significant changes in their donations this year. The Congress received Rs 522.13 crore, marking a sharp decline of about 43 per cent from Rs 1,129 crore in 2023-24.
The BJD could manage only Rs 60 crore during 2024-25, compared to Rs 246 crore in the previous fiscal. The Naveen Patnaik-led regional party, which remained the ruling party in Odisha for over 24 years from 2000 to 2024, received a contribution of Rs 60 crore during the 2024-25 financial year with global natural resources conglomerate Vedanta Limited being its highest donor.
The BJD received Rs 25 crore from Vedanta Limited while another Rs 35 crore came through three electoral trusts, revealed the contribution report submitted by the party to the ECI in Form 24A. The data only showed contributions above Rs 20,000.
In the previous two financial years, 2023-24 and 2022-23, the BJD showed nil income through contributions above Rs 20,000. On the other hand, the party’s income through electoral bonds was pegged at a total of Rs 775 crore for the two financial years, according to an ADR (Association for Democratic Reforms) report.
The 2024-25 financial year is also the first year without electoral bonds after the Supreme Court struck down the scheme as unconstitutional. Under the electoral bond scheme, political parties had received over Rs 16,000 crore in anonymous donations over the years, with the BJP receiving the largest share.
