Jindal Group companies, including Jindal Steel and Power Ltd and Jindal Stainless Ltd, purchased electoral bonds worth ₹195.5 crore and were among the top 50 donors, according to the data by the Election Commission of India.
Jindal Steel and Power was the 15th biggest donor according to the ECI data. This is based on the transactions between April 12, 2019 and January 24, 2024. The company bought bonds worth ₹123 crore. Jindal Stainless on the other hand bought bonds worth ₹30 crore. Jindal Saw bought ₹29 crore bonds, Jindal Poly Films bought ₹3.5 crore and Jindal House bought bonds worth ₹10 crore.
The Jindal Group was founded by OP Jindal in 1952 by establishing an indigenous single-unit steel plant in Hisar, Haryana. Today, the conglomerate's businesses include mining, power, industrial gases, seaport facilities and steel manufacturing. As of September 2022, the Group's valuation stood at $18 billion (₹18,000 crore).
Other donors in the list include listed entities like Vedanta, Jindal Steel and Power, IFB Agro, Torrent Power, Dr Reddy's Laboratories Aurobindo Pharma, Natco Pharma.
On February 15, a five-judge Constitution bench
scrapped the Centre’s electoral bonds scheme that allowed anonymous political funding, calling it "unconstitutional" and ordered disclosure by the EC of donors, the amount donated by them and the recipients.
