Electoral trusts fill BJP coffers after scrapping of electoral bonds, shows ECI website
New Delhi: Contrary to expectations that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would be adversely affected by the Supreme Court’s scrapping of the electoral bonds scheme in February 2024, the party’s finances have seen a significant boost in 2024–25 through electoral trusts. It has emerged that electoral trusts alone donated ₹2,577 crore to the BJP during this period.
Following the abolition of electoral bonds, corporate donors seeking partial anonymity appear to have shifted to the electoral trust route, with the BJP continuing to be the largest beneficiary.
According to data available on the Election Commission of India’s website, a total of ₹4,276 crore was donated through electoral trusts, of which the ruling BJP received 83.6 per cent. Compared to 2023–24, corporate donations flowing to the BJP have increased nearly fourfold. The Congress received 7.3 per cent of the total donations, while the Trinamool Congress accounted for 3.6 per cent.
Donations received through electoral trusts constitute only a portion of the total funds collected by political parties. Parties also receive contributions directly from individuals, corporates, institutions and charitable organisations. Over the past several years, donations from sources other than electoral trusts have also shown a steady increase.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Andhra to be developed as knowledge, creator economy hub: CM Naidu
New Delhi/Amaravati (PTI): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Friday said the state is taking steps to transform itself into a knowledge and creator economy hub with a strong focus on artificial intelligence and quantum technology.
He noted that Andhra Pradesh has abundant tech-driven youth and the government is formulating plans to train them in futuristic technologies with support from global technology firms.
"Our goal is to transform Andhra Pradesh into a knowledge hub by focusing on AI, quantum computing, data centres, drone cities and space cities. The youth will remain our biggest asset over the next 25 years, and we seek global partnerships to scale up the creator economy," said Naidu during his interactions at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 in Delhi.
Naidu, who participated in the summit in the national capital, also held meetings with several global technology leaders and industrialists to explore collaborations in artificial intelligence, clean energy and innovation ecosystems.
He met Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen, Autodesk AI Head Mike Haley, Aramco India Director Abdul Rehman AiThukair, LEGO Education Vice President Tom Hall, Aadhaar Founder and CTO Srikanth Nadhamuni, Khosla Ventures Managing Partner Vinod Khosla and others at the AP Pavilion.
The chief minister also held discussions with Saudi Aramco representatives on clean energy projects, including solar initiatives, and invited the company to expand operations in Andhra Pradesh, stating that the state is highly suitable for green energy production.
He sought support from NVIDIA Vice President Callista Redmond for establishing AI Living Labs and proposed partnerships through the Ratan Tata Innovation Hub to promote youth innovation, including collaborations with IIT Tirupati and Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Tirupati under the Andhra Pradesh Future Innovation and Research for Science and Technology (AP FIRST) initiative.
Naidu urged Autodesk leadership to support the development of Global Capability Centres in design engineering and requested the establishment of an Innovation Academy in Amaravati aligned with quantum technology, besides proposing AI and robotics learning labs in partnership with LEGO Education.
He also discussed AI-driven smart governance solutions with Quantela Inc Chairman Sridhar Gadhi, while World Bank Group Digital AI Regional Director Mahesh Uttamchandani met Naidu on the sidelines of the summit.
Following the meetings, Naidu visited various exhibition stalls at the summit, including those of NVIDIA, Tata, Intel and Microsoft, and reviewed AI applications across agriculture, healthcare and industry.
