Prudent Electoral Trust Dominates Political Funding Post-Bonds Ban

• Supreme Court banned Electoral Bonds on Feb 15, 2024, emphasizing transparency in political funding.
• Post-ban, Prudent Electoral Trust emerged as the primary channel, routing an estimated Rs 2,668 crore to parties in 2024-25.
• BJP received Rs 2,180 crore and Congress Rs 216 crore, largely via Prudent.
• Prudent, founded in 2013 (originally Satya Electoral Trust), acts as a conduit for corporate donors like Bharti Airtel, DLF, and Hero MotoCorp.
• While donor names are public, precise amounts are confidential; historically, ~80% of funds go to BJP.

Why It Matters: Prudent Electoral Trust is now central to political funding, raising transparency concerns post-Electoral Bonds ban.