Future Gaming, Megha Engineering, Vedanta among top buyers of electoral bonds, shows SBI data

Data on electoral bonds was submitted to EC by SBI in compliance with deadline set by Supreme Court which had also directed poll panel to make this data public by 15 March.

State Bank of India (SBI) was issuing authority for electoral bonds | Representational image | ANI

New Delhi: Between Future Gaming and Hotel Services PR and Future Gaming and Hotel Services Pvt. Ltd, the two firms purchased electoral bonds worth over 1,300 crores, shows data on the Electoral Bonds scheme released by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Data also shows that among those who purchased electoral bonds amounting to the highest value were Future Gaming and Hotel Services PR, Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd, Qwik Supply Chain Pvt. Ltd, Haldia Energy Ltd and Vedanta Ltd.

According to media reports, Future Gaming and Hotel Services is a lottery company that was facing an Enforcement Directorate (ED) probe in 2022.

The data on electoral bonds was submitted to the poll panel by the State Bank of India (SBI) Tuesday, in line with the deadline set by the Supreme Court which had also directed the EC to make this data public by 15 March. 

Uploaded on the Commission’s website, the data also shows that another firm by the name of Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd purchased 966 electoral bonds worth over Rs 966 crores. 

According to its Linkedin page, the firm is a Telangana-based company that “operates through its major business lines such as water management, engineering, construction, manufacturing, transportation, hydrocarbons, power, process industries, and defence”.

Released by the Election Commission Thursday, the two separate documents of 763 pages each give data on electoral bonds purchased by individual donors and encashed by political parties. According to the Supreme Court, SBI issued electoral bonds worth Rs 16,518 crore in 30 tranches since the inception of the scheme in 2018.

Among prominent names featured in the list of donors were those of Piramal Enterprises Ltd, Piramal Capital and Housing Finance and Piramal Pharma Ltd, whose combined purchase of electoral bonds was worth Rs 48 crore. 

Data also shows that gold loan NBFC Muthoot Finance purchased 30 electoral bonds worth Rs 10 lakh each in April 2019.

Further, it shows that Vedanta Ltd — a multinational mining firm headquartered in Mumbai — purchased 386 electoral bonds worth over Rs 370 crore between 2019 and 2024, while telecom giant Bharti Airtel Ltd purchased electoral bonds worth 183 crore, of which those worth 142 crore were purchased November 2023 onwards. Data also shows that an entity identified as “Bharti Airtel Limited Airtel CurreNT AC-GCO” purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 13.20 crore in April 2019, weeks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

While releasing the data, the EC in a statement said: “In compliance of Hon’ble Supreme Court’s directions, contained in its order dated Feb 15 & March 11, 2024 (in the matter of WPC NO.880 of 2017), the State Bank of India (SBI) had provided the data pertaining to the electoral bonds to the Election Commission of India (ECI) on March 12, 2024.” 

It added: “It may be recalled that in the said matter, ECI has consistently and categorically weighed in favour of disclosure and transparency, a position reflected in the proceedings of the Hon’ble Supreme Court and noted in the order also.”

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, who appeared for petitioner Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) in the Supreme Court in the electoral bonds case, however, said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) Thursday, “The Info of #ElectoralBonds uploaded by EC (which they say is as recd from SBI), does not give the serial number of the bonds, which is necessary for finding who gave bond to whom. This was implicit in SC Jt. SBI affidavit said this info is recorded though in separate silos.”

(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)