BJP received donation from company being probed for ‘terror funding’ by ED   

Amidst ongoing political tussle over electoral bonds controversy between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Opposition, financial declarations by the BJP for the year 2014-15, to the Election Commission reveal that the ruling party took ₹ 10 crores as donation from a company now being probed by Enforcement Directorate (ED) for facilitating “terror funding”.

RKW Developers Ltd, the company under ED’s probe gave ₹ 10 crores to the ruling party in 2014-15, according to the BJP’s filings with the Election Commission, analysed by The Wire.

This new revelation is a new blow to BJP that has been already stuck on allegedly piling pressure on the finance ministry to open a window to donate expired electoral bonds worth ₹ 10 crore to an unidentified political party or parties soon after 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections.

ED has been probing RKW for carrying out transactions with and buying properties from the late Iqbal Memon alias Iqbal Mirchi who is an accused in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts and also close aide of mafia don Dawood Ibrahim.

This sensational revelation comes up weeks after BJP president and union Home Minister Amit Shah accused NCP leader Praful Patel of treason for having bought a property from the wife of an accused terrorist, referring to Iqbal Mirchi.

As the BJP receives large money from several electoral trusts, RKW has been emerged as the top donor to the party.

On the revelation, Congress slammed BJP, posting a tweet: “Links to Iqbal Mirchi, terror funding companies & a litany of organisation being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate, the BJP's Electoral Bond Scandal may have crossed over from Corruption to Treason.”

Former director of RKW, Ranjeet Bindra, has been arrested by the ED for allegedly facilitating deals on behalf of the underworld. The ED alleges that RKW Developers facilitated the sale of Mirchi’s properties and Bindra had allegedly taken a commission of ₹ 30 crore.

Sunblink Real Estate was accused by ED of buying Mirchi’s properties. BJP’s financial declarations to EC shows that it received ₹ 2 crore from Skill Realtors Private Limited, which is the sister company of Sunblink.

Interestingly, last month, the Iqbal Mirchi case was a contentious issue in the run up of Maharashtra Assembly election. The ED investigation pertains to alleged property transactions between Mirchi, Millennium Developers (a firm owned by NCP leader Praful Patel) and Sunblink. But the investigation got over before the Maharashtra elections held.