It might be legal, but still disturbing. Between 2004-05 and 2014-15, political parties got contributions worth more than Rs 6,800 crore from unknown sources. Of the Rs 4,000 crore that the Congress received during this period, 83% was from unknown sources. The BJP, which came to power at the Centre in 2014, recorded an income of Rs 3,273 crore, of which 65% was from unknown sources. Surprisingly, 57% of the Rs 110 crore collected by the Aam Aadmi Party in 2013-15 was from unknown sources. The BSP, which collected Rs 764 crore gave no details of donors. This scenario points to one thing “ political parties need to be more transparent in their funding. According to existing rules, it is mandatory to declare only donations above Rs 20,000 to the Election Commission of India. This gives political parties enough place to hide huge sums, as can be seen from the evidence unearthed by Association for Democratic Reforms. If the Modi government is truly committed to blocking avenues for creation of black money it ought to start with political parties and step one would be to make all donations public.
Can Trump make real change as president?
Sharece Thrower The writer is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Vanderbilt University Based on his erratic behavior during the campaign, many fear what Donald Trump will do in office. Some believe that his strong personality could lead to disastrous policies that could negatively affect health care, nuclear warfare and other aspects of our lives. As a scholar of presidential power, I’d suggest such concerns are likely overblown. Despite his distinct individuality,…
