Santiago Martin's multi-crore donations; SBI withholds full disclosure, citing security concerns

NEW DELHI: Controversial lottery tycoon Santiago Martin, who allegedly donated 509 crores to DMK through election bonds, has revealed the figures of funding to various political parties. Trinamool Congress purportedly received the highest amount - 542 crores, followed by 154 crores to YSR Congress and 100 crores to BJP. Congress was also listed as receiving 50 crores.

Political parties in Sikkim were also recipients of funds. Martin's Future Gaming and Hotel Services Company purportedly purchased bonds worth Rs 1368 crore. Kwik Supply Chain, which allegedly has ties to Reliance, reportedly provided 375 crores to the BJP, 25 crores to Shiv Sena and 10 crores to NCP.

Following the Supreme Court's stringent stance, SBI handed over unique alphanumeric numbers of the election bonds to the Election Commission. According to the court order, this information was made available through the Election Commission website. The data spans from April 12, 2019, to February 15, 2024.

Simultaneously, SBI informed the Supreme Court that it would not disclose the full details of account numbers and KYC information of political parties, citing security concerns. In an affidavit submitted by SBI Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara, it was stated that the KYC information of bond buyers is withheld for security reasons.

Liquor case and bond

A Hyderabad businessman arrested in a liquor case, P. Sarath Chandra Reddy, purportedly director of Aurobindo Pharma, also allegedly bought bonds. Bonds worth 34.5 crores were purportedly exchanged, with 52 crores allegedly linked to BJP, 15 crores to BRS and 2.5 crores to TDP.