Sources 'untraceable' for 69% income of political parties

As much as 69 per cent of the total income of political parties over a period of 11 years came from unknown sources, said a report released on Tuesday by an NGO working towards electoral reforms.

According to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), while the total income of 48 national and regional political parties between 2004-05 and 2014-15 stood at Rs 11,367 crore, sources of as much as Rs 7,833 crore of it were untraceable.

Trilochan Sastry, Founder Member of ADR, said: "The income from known donors was Rs 1,835 crore (16 per cent) and income through other known sources, such as sale of assets, membership fees, bank interest, sale of publications and party levy, was Rs 1,698 crore (15 per cent)."

"However, the remaining income of Rs 7,833 crore, which works out to 69 per cent of the total income, does have sources to attribute," he added.

--IANS

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