GUNTUR: In an interesting turn of events, Shirdi Sai Electricals (SSE), a Hyderabad-based firm headed by N Visweswara Reddy, which has been in the good books of the YSRC since a long time, is the biggest donor to the opposition TDP, and donated no funds to the YSRC. The TDP has received a whopping Rs 40 crore from SSE.
In a similar manner, BJP Rajya Sabha MP CM Ramesh had donated Rs 45 crore to the opposition Congress through his Rithwik Projects Private Ltd (RPPL). The analysis of electoral bonds data uploaded by the Election Commission of India highlights such contrasts.
Until the past few months, TDP and JSP accused the YSRC government of favouring SSE, and providing additional incentives to it. However, the accusations died down.
Meanwhile, out of the total Rs 45 crore donated by the RPPL, 66.7% was given to the Congress, followed by 10% to the Janata Dal, and 5% to the TDP. The Janata Dal received Rs 10 crore and the TDP Rs 5 crore.
Granular details of the electoral bonds bought by companies across the country emerged with the State Bank of India on March 21, releasing additional information pertaining to the bond scheme. The Supreme Court earlier this week had asked SBI to make a complete disclosure to the Election Commission of India for publication.
Analysis of this report shows that the YSRC has encashed as many as 472 bonds worth Rs 337 crore, TDP 279 bonds worth Rs 218.88 crore, and JSP 39 bonds worth Rs 21 crore between April 12, 2019 and January 2024.
The YSRC has received a major chunk of its funding of Rs 154 crore from Coimbatore-based Future Gaming and Hotel Services of ‘Lottery King’ Santiago Martin. Though his connections with the YSRC are unclear, as the lottery is banned in the State, Martin contributed 45.7% of the total amount received by the ruling party. While Future Gaming Group is the biggest purchaser of electoral bonds, the YSRC is its third biggest beneficiary.
Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL), founded by Pitchi Reddy and Puritipati Venkata Krishna Reddy, and subsidiaries of Megha group, is the second biggest donor for both the YSRC and the TDP. It gave Rs 37 crore to the YSRC and Rs 28 crore to the TDP.
Ramco Cements, a Chennai-based firm headed by PR Venketrama Raja gave Rs 24 crore to the YSRC. The party has also received Rs 17 crore each from Delhi-based Ostro Jaisalmer Private Ltd, and Ostro Madhya Wind Private Ltd, and Rs 10 cr from Sneha Kinetic Power Projects, whose directors are Venkata Kamala Kumar Vellore and Prathipati Ananda Srinivasa Rao.
While SSE contributed 18.3% of total electoral bonds of the TDP, Western UP Power Transmission Company Ltd, a subsidiary of Megha Group, donated Rs 20 crore. Hyderabad-based Bharat BioTech founded by Dr Krishna M Ella donated Rs 10 crore. The TDP also received Rs 5 crore from Chiron Behring Vaccines Private Ltd, which was acquired by Bharat BioTech in 2019. Along with this, the TDP also received Rs 14 crore from NATCO, a Hyderabad-based pharma company founded by VC Nannapaneni, Rs 10 crore from Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd, founded by Kallam Anji Reddy. Sri Chaitanya Students Facility contributed Rs 5 crore to the TDP.
Out of the total amount of Rs 21 crore received by the JSP through poll bonds, MEIL and its subsidiary Western UP Power Transmission Company Ltd, contributed the majority of Rs 12 crore, NATCO Pharma donated `5 crore, followed by Kolkata-based JIT Industrial Park Rs 2 crore, while V Prabhu Kishore, founder and chairman of Varun Motors in AP donated Rs 1 crore. Interestingly, Sri Chaitanya Students Facility Management, which donated to the BJP, Congress, and TDP, also donated Rs 1 crore to the JSP.
Encashment of bonds
(April 12, 2019 to January 2024)
Rs 337 cr YSRC - 472
Rs 21 cr JSP - 39
Rs 218.88 cr TDP - 279
‘Breakfast with Lokesh’
As part of his election campaign, TDP general secretary Nara Lokesh held the ‘Breakfast with Lokesh’ programme in Mangalagiri on Friday. Maintaining that decentralisation of development was given highest priority during the previous TDP regime, he regretted that after the YSRC came to power it totally destroyed Amaravati.
Jana Sena campaign HQ
The Jana Sena has decided to make Pithapuram, from where party chief Pawan Kalyan will be contesting, the JSP campaign headquarters for the ensuing elections. The JSP chief will initially stay in Pithapuram for three days as part of his electioneering, party sources said.