Indian opposition party accuses Modi of depriving it of election funds

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
21 Mar 2024 14:03

The leader of the Indian National Congress party says a lack of finances has made it "helpless" as the elections loom.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends the 18th East Asia Summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, on September 7, 2023. (AFP)

On Thursday, the opposition in India stated that the government's action of freezing its bank accounts has deprived it of funds to compete against the well-financed ruling party in the upcoming April 19 lengthy general elections, where almost one billion and more Indian citizens are eligible for voting.

"Our entire financial identity has been erased," said Indian National Congress party member Rahul Gandhi, 53, whose family has dominated national politics since independence.

"We have no money to campaign, we cannot support our candidates. Our ability to fight elections has been damaged," he added.

Last February, Indian authorities froze several of the party's accounts for alleged late filing of tax returns.

The Congress party claimed that the actions taken by the tax department are politically motivated, aimed at preventing it from posing a challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP); a right-wing Hindu nationalist party.

"Last week, we received another notice from the tax authorities that dates back to our filings from 1995-96," Gandhi told reporters in New Delhi, stressing "We don't even have money to print publicity material."

Not speaking up

In a rare public appearance, former Congress chief and Rahul's mother Sonia Gandhi, 77, said the tax penalty was "part of the systemic efforts to cripple" the party.

The primary financial investigation agency in the country, the Enforcement Directorate, has initiated investigations into the affairs of at least five state chief ministers or their families, all of whom are political opponents of Modi's BJP.

Rahul criticized "institutions which are supposed to protect the framework of democracy" for not speaking up, placing the blame on the Election Commission for not intervening.

"There is no democracy in India today," he said.

Leader of the Indian National Congress, Mallikarjun Kharge, said the lack of finances made it "helpless" as the elections loom.

"There is no level playing field," he said.

The latest official figures revealed that the BJP funds are tenfold those of the Congress party.

The gap between political parties, particularly the BJP and its opponents, widened significantly after the Modi government introduced electoral bonds in 2017. These bonds allowed for unlimited anonymous donations to political parties, raising concerns about transparency and accountability in political funding.

Last month, the Supreme Court of India declared the electoral bond scheme unconstitutional and ordered that details of donors and recipients be made public. This decision was a significant step towards greater transparency in political funding.

The released details revealed that the BJP was the single-largest beneficiary of these donations, receiving nearly half of all donations amounting to around $730 million.