Photographs: Parth Sanyal/Reuters
Political parties in India have 'earned' a whopping Rs 4,662 crore through donations and other sources since 2004 with the ruling Congress at the top with an income of Rs 2,008 crore followed by the Bharatiya Janata Party at Rs 994 crore.
The income of political parties from 2004 to 20111 shows an almost steady growth.
The Congress has the highest income, which went from Rs 222 crore in 2004-2005 to Rs 307.08 crore in 2010-2011, followed by the BJP. In 2004-2005, the BJP, which is the main opposition party, earned Rs 104 crore and in 2010-2011 and its earnings were Rs 168 crore, according to a Right to Information application filed by the Association for Democratic Reforms.
Among the major political parties in the country, there was decrease in the income of the Samajwadi Party. Its total income went down from Rs 28.54 crore in 2004-05 to Rs 15.21 crore in 2010-11.
Relying on the IT returns and list of donors submitted to the Election Commission for the period 2004-2011, the Association for Democratic Reforms and National Election Watch released a report of the income of political parties in the country.
Congress
With an annual income of Rs 307.08 crore in 2010-2011, the Congress is the richest party in the county. Interestingly, the income of the Congress more than doubled from Rs 220 crore in 2007-2008 to Rs 496 crore in 2008-2009.
The figures complied by ADR and NEW show that Congress' income is Rs 2,008 crore, mostly through selling of 'coupons', since it began heading a government at the Centre in 2004 till 2011 though the percentage of donations is just 14.42 per cent.
The party's income from 2004-2007 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 222 crore
2005-2006: Rs 124 crore
2006-2007: Rs 169 crore
2007-2008: Rs 220 crore
2008-2009: Rs 496 crore
2009-2010: Rs 497 crore
2010-2011: Rs 307 crore
...
BJP: Rs 168 crore
Image: A supporter of the BJP holds a picture of BJP leader L Krishna Advani in Balasinor, GujaratPhotographs: Amit Dave/Reuters
The annual income of the BJP in 2010-2011 is almost half of that of the Congress. It earned Rs 168 crore and is the second richest party in the country.
81.47 per cent of BJP's total income of Rs 994 crore in the past seven years came through donations from corporate houses and trusts owned by major firms, including the London-listed Vedanta.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 104 crore
2005-2006: Rs 38.34 crore
2006-2007: Rs 82.49 crore
2007-2008: Rs 123 crore
2008-2009: Rs 220 crore
2009-2010: Rs 258 crore
2010-2011: Rs 168 crore
BSP: Rs 115.7 crore
Image: BSP chief MayawatiPhotographs: Tanushree Punwani/Reuters
The BSP has seen a whopping rise in income from a mere Rs 4.2 crore in 2004-2005 to Rs 115.7 crore in 2010-2011.
The BSP has declared that it has not received any donations above Rs 20,000.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 4.2 crore
2005-2006: Rs 9.7 crore
2006-2007: Rs 45.88 crore
2007-2008: Rs 69.7 crore
2008-2009: Rs 182 crore
2009-2010: Rs 56.97 crore
2010-2011: Rs 115.7 crore
NCP: Rs 22.3 crore
Image: NCP chief Sharad PawarPhotographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters
The Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party has seen a steady growth in earnings over the last five years. Its income went from Rs 12.1 crore in 2004-2005 to Rs 23.3 crore in 2010-2011.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 12.1 crore
2005-2006: Rs 7.37 crore
2006-2007: Rs 15.80 crore
2007-2008: Rs 69.7 crore
2008-2009: Rs 40 crore
2009-2010: Rs 44.84 crore
2010-2011: Rs 22.3 crore
CPI: Rs 2.12 crore
Image: Supporters of the CPI during a rally in New DelhiPhotographs: Danish Siddiqui/Reuters
The earnings of the Communist Party of India were Rs 50 lakh in 2004-2005 and has gone up to Rs 2.12 crore in 2010-2011. The CPI said its leaders A B Bardhan and D Raja contributed Rs 65 lakh and Rs 21 lakh respectively by collecting donations from various sources.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 50 lakh
2005-2006: Rs 53 lakh
2006-2007: Rs 68 lakh
2007-2008: Rs 59 lakh
2008-2009: Rs 1.06 crore
2009-2010: Rs 1.29 crore
2010-2011: Rs 2.12 crore
CPI-M: Rs 76.57 crore
Image: Supporters of the CPI-M attend a public rally in AgartalaPhotographs: Jayanta Dey/Reuters
The Communist Party of India-Marxist, which made Rs 39.88 crore in 2004-2005, earned Rs 76.57 core in 2010-2011.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 39.88 crore
2005-2006: Rs 41.6 crore
2006-2007: Rs 63.4 crore
2007-2008: Rs 59.7 crore
2008-2009: Rs 62.83 crore
2009-2010: Rs 73.28 crore
2010-2011: Rs 76.57 crore
AIADMK: Rs 14.2 crore
Image: A artist applies the finishing touches to the portrait of Jayalalithaa in ChennaiPhotographs: Ananthakrishnan/Reuters
Jayalalithaa's All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam income increased to Rs 14.2 crore in 2010-2011 from Rs 1.17 crore five years ago.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 1.17 crore
2005-2006: Rs 12.95 crore
2006-2007: Rs 6.4 crore
2007-2008: Rs 2.99 crore
2008-2009: Rs 12.5 crore
2009-2010: Rs 9.74 crore
2010-2011: Rs 14.2 crore
DMK: Rs 6.42 crore
Image: DMK chief Karunanidhi speaks during a meeting at party headquarters in ChennaiPhotographs: Babu/Reuters
The earnings of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam went from Rs 2.14 crore in 2004-2005 to Rs 6.42 crore in 2010-2011.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 2.14 crore
2005-2006: Rs 4.15 crore
2006-2007: Rs 2.66 crore
2007-2008: Rs 16.81 crore
2008-2009: Rs 12.06 crore
2009-2010: RTI response awaited
2010-2011: Rs 6.42 crore
Samajwadi Party: Rs 15.21 crore
Image: Uttar Pradesh CM Akhilesh Yadav speaks in front of a portrait of his father and the Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav in LucknowPhotographs: Pawan Kumar/Reuters
The Samajwadi Party showed a decrease in its total income from Rs 28.54 crore in 2004-05 to Rs 15.21 crore in 2010-2011.
The party's income from 2004-2005 till 2010-2011:
2004-2005: Rs 28.54 crore
2005-2006: Rs 48.35 crore
2006-2007: Rs 87.05 crore
2007-2008: Rs 32.30 crore
2008-2009: Rs 39 crore
2009-2010: 28.10 crore
2010-2011: Rs 15.21 crore
Trinamool Congress: Rs 6.16 crore
Image: A cycle rickshaw puller speaks on a mobile phone in front of Trinamool Congress party office in KolkataPhotographs: Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters
Among the big political parties in the country Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress is the poorest with its annual income in 2010-2011 being 6.16 crore. The RTI response of the party's earnings in 2004-2005 is awaited. However, from the information available its income has risen.
The party made Rs 60.07 lakh in 2006-2007.
2004-2005: RTI repose awaited
2005-2006: RTI repose awaited
2006-2007: Rs 69.07 lakh
2007-2008: Rs 68.97 lakh
2008-2009: RTI repose awaited
2009-2010: 1.95 crore
2010-2011: Rs 6.16 crore
Other parties:
The total income of other parties from 2004 to 2011 are Shriomani Akali Dal (Rs 25 crore), National Conference (Rs 21 crore), Janal Dal-United (Rs 26 crore), Telugu Desam Party (53 crore), Shiv Sena (Rs 32 crore), Lok Janshakti Party (Rs 4 crore) Telangana Rashtra Samithi and Rashtriya Lok Dal (Rs 10 crore each), Forward Bloc (Rs 98 lakh) and Sikkim Democratic Front (Rs 92 lakh), the least among all.
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