In a significant financial development for India's political landscape, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as the frontrunner among national parties in terms of donation receipts, according to a new report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). The BJP's total donations soared to ₹2,243.94 crore in the financial year 2023-24, marking a remarkable 211.72% increase from ₹719.85 crore in the previous year.

The report highlights the sharp contrast between the BJP's financial gains and the donation receipts of its primary rival, the Congress party. Despite being outpaced by the BJP, Congress witnessed a significant surge in its contributions, with donations rising from ₹79.92 crore to ₹281.48 crore, reflecting an impressive 252.18% increase.

Notably, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) declared no donations above ₹20,000 for the first time in 18 years, signaling a decline in the party's financial strength. The BSP has struggled in recent elections, failing to secure any seats in the 2024 national elections and only managing one seat in the 403-member Uttar Pradesh assembly in 2022. Once a dominant force under Mayawati's leadership, the party's support base appears to have eroded.

In contrast, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) experienced a steep decline in donations, with a decrease of ₹26.03 crore (70.18%), bringing its total contributions down to ₹11.06 crore.

The overall donations received by national parties—BJP, Congress, AAP, National People’s Party (NPP), and CPI(M)—totaled ₹2,544.27 crore in 2023-24, nearly tripling from ₹850.43 crore in the previous year. This marks a 199.17% overall increase across the five parties, highlighting a significant shift in political funding patterns.

However, the ADR report also raised concerns over transparency in political donations, noting that key parties, including the BJP and Congress, failed to fully disclose the Permanent Account Number (PAN) details for some donations. Specifically, 889 donations, amounting to ₹19.8 crore, lacked complete PAN information, while several donations were made without proper cheque or demand draft details, complicating efforts to trace the money trail.

These revelations shed light on the increasing role of financial contributions in shaping India’s political landscape, raising important questions about transparency and accountability in political funding.