At least 4 Kolkata companies in list of top 10 electoral bond donors

At least four companies headquartered in Kolkata — Haldia Energy Limited, Essel Mining and Industry Limited, Keventer Foodpark Infra Limited, and Madanlal Limited — feature in the list of top 10 electoral bond donors.

After the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), West Bengal ruling Trinamool Congress is the second highest recipient of political donations through electoral bonds, according to the data released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Thursday.

It is also not just headliner businesses, but plenty of smaller, relatively lesser known entities in the city are the major buyers of corporate bonds, data shows. Company information accessed through the Registrar of Companies and private corporate information portals, such as Zaubacorp, show many don’t even have a clear listing of businesses.
 

Industry majors lead the chart.

With receipts worth Rs 377 core, Haldia Energy Limited is the fourth-largest buyer of corporate bonds in India. Part of the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, the power company operates two 300 megawatt (Mw) coal-based thermal power plants at Haldia and supplies its power to CESC Limited, the distribution licensee for the city of Kolkata.

The company consistently bought bonds since May 2019, on at least 15 different occasions, data shows.
 

Sixth in the national list, Kolkata-based Essel Mining & Industries Limited, part of the $60 billion global conglomerate Aditya Birla Group, meanwhile, bought bonds worth Rs 224.5 crore on five different occasions since April 2019.
 

Lesser known big spenders 
 

Apart from leading business groups, there is a variety of small businesses that have shelled out hundreds of crores for electoral bonds.
 

A certain Madanlal Limited spent Rs 185.5 crore on bonds. The company is engaged in purchase and sale of securities and the real estate sector, its website says. It has cross ownership with the MKJ Group of Companies and another major spender on this list, the Keventer group. Including Madanlal Limited, four different entities linked to the Keventer group, which calls itself the largest FMCG company in Eastern India, spent a total of more than Rs 600 crore.
 

MKJ Group, which has cross ownership with the above-mentioned corporations, has itself bought 
 

Rs 128 crore worth of bonds. The company’s website said: “It has been trading in stainless steel for over a decade having handled substantial domestic business.” 

 

Myriad financial agencies that have no clear business description and an online presence have participated in political donations. Merchandising firms, export-import trading, financing and investing agencies all headquartered in Kolkata have picked electoral bonds, though largely in small quantities.  Transways Exim Private Limited, a company involved in manufacturing of alcoholic beverages and restaurant operations, bought bonds worth Rs 47 crore. According to the company’s Linkedin profile, its liquor brand portfolio includes local favourites Calcutta Gin, Emboss whiskey, and rock rum, alongside other brands. It is also the franchise partner for restaurant brands, such as PAPAYA and Modern Asian Bistro in the city. 
 

Based in the city, 10-year old Westwell Gasses Private Limited bought bonds worth Rs 28.5 crore. The company is involved in the production, processing and preservation of meat, fish, fruits, vegetables, oils, and fats, according to Zaubacorp.
 

Also headquartered in the city, bulk commodities handler Ripley Stevedoring and Handling Pvt Ltd had purchased Rs 11.5 crore of electoral bonds. According to the company’s website, it handles and transports about 25 million tonnes of various commodities (steel, iron-ore, coal, coke, limestone, fertiliser) annually at Haldia, Paradip, and Vizag ports.
 

In July, MV Ripley Pride, a bulk carrier, became the first ship to be leased from Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City). ABC India Ltd, one of the oldest road logistics companies in the country, purchased bonds worth Rs 40 lakh. An equal amount of funds was spent on bonds by VPL Oil Marketing Pvt Ltd, incorporated in 2004.