NEW DELHI: Faced with tight purse strings and a cash-rich BJP ahead of the 2019 polls, the Congress is resorting to crowd-funding with the added purpose of boosting its image of not solely depending on corporate funds.
The drive, launched in poll-bound Rajasthan, will be expanded to other states over the coming weeks, said party sources who described the move as an attempt to be a party which practices transparency in raising funds.
The online fund collection drive is also aimed at presenting the Congress as a party which does not depend on corporate funding alone and is capable of remaining free of corporate influence if it comes to power.
That line of thought, said the sources, has emanated after the tough stand that the party has taken against a big private player in the Rafale jet deal.
Seeking online contributions is also an attempt to connect with the young professionals who are in the 20-25 year age bracket and will work for three more decades. “We need to have faith of the voters, especially the youngsters. They should be able to contribute to polls either financially, socially or politically,” Rajasthan Congress chief Sachin Pilot said.
Party managers involved in crowd-funding drive said they have had two small projects over the past months in Karnataka and Odisha as test runs, which were carried out successfully.
Since 2014 the party could not attract mega corporate donors and was often found telling its candidates to be on their own. The appointment of Ahmed Patel as AICC treasurer was an indicator that Rahul Gandhi was concerned over the state of its coffers.
AAP was the first party to go public
The AAP launched one of the biggest crowdfunding campaigns ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections and managed to raise H21 crore by November that year.