J&K Assembly polls
Several J&K political parties received heavy donations but declared zero budget
JAMMU: A recent audit report released by the Election Commission has revealed startling financial irregularities among political parties that contested the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.
According to reports published in a national Hindi newspaper, the Election Department has made public the balance sheets of 35 smaller political parties, exposing a wide gap between donations received and the figures officially disclosed.
The audit, coming nearly six months after the elections, shows that while some parties claimed to have spent nothing, they still managed to campaign actively and emerge as significant disruptors to mainstream political outfits.
Surprisingly, a few parties that received donations above Rs 20,000 garnered fewer votes than the NOTA (None of the Above) option, raising serious questions about their financial transparency and electoral effectiveness.
Out of the 35 small political outfits under scrutiny, 17 had actively contested the Assembly elections.
Among them, five parties received donations amounting to lakhs of rupees. The Democratic Progressive Azad Party, founded by former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, reported the highest financial figures.
The party contested 23 Assembly seats and declared election-related expenses amounting to Rs 34.32 lakh.
During the same period, it received donations worth Rs6.32 lakh. Interestingly, shortly after the elections, the party dissolved its executive body.
In a more shocking revelation, 13 political parties submitted balance sheets claiming zero income and zero expenditure. Yet, some of these were seen on the ground campaigning and contesting the elections.
Despite officially stating a zero-budget campaign, these parties added to the complexities of the electoral landscape, often affecting the performance of larger, better-funded parties.
The report also highlights the tight margins in several constituencies.
In at least seven Assembly seats, the difference between the winning and losing candidates was less than 1,000 votes. These close contests demonstrate how even small political players can influence the final outcomes, regardless of their declared financial status.
Overall, the 17 political parties that participated in the polls collectively secured more than 24 percent of the total vote share, denying any single party a clear majority in the Assembly.
The Election Department has now uploaded the audited balance sheets of all 35 parties on its official website to ensure public access to financial data and promote transparency in the democratic process.
