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Gujarat Police has registered an FIR against three RUPPs in the state.
The police have levelled the allegations of tax defrauds.
The tax defrauds aggregate to over Rs 1,870 crore.
THE GUJARAT POLICE have filed cases against three Gujarat-based Registered Unrecognized Political Parties (RUPP) and all related individuals, based on complaints by the Income Tax department on Sunday, September 27, 2026, The Indian Express Reported. The First Information Report (FIR) was registered by the crime branch on Friday, which alleged that the government suffered losses of Rs 560 crore over false donations of around Rs 1,870 crore received by three RUPPs.
See Also: BBC Investigation Reveals PM Modi’s State Gujarat as a Lighthouse For Black Money Politics
The functioning of the RUPPs came to light after a BBC News Hindi report earlier this month. The investigative report revealed that donations were made to six RUPPs, which were more than the national parties, except the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the financial year 2023- 2024.
The parties that came under focus were the Aam Janmat Party, Bharatiya National Janata Dal, Garib Kalyan Party, New India United Party, Satyawadi Rakshak Party and the Swatantrata Abhivyakti Party.
According to the report by The Indian Express, Gujarat police filed an FIR against three parties, i.e. the Bharatiya National Janata Dal, Swantantrata Abhivyakti Party and Garib Kalyan Party. Furthermore, the police have also booked four individuals linked to the Bharatiya National Janata Dal, three from Swatantrata Abhivyakti Party and eight linked to the Garib Kalyan Party.
The police reportedly alleged that these three parties received huge amounts of monetary donations from multiple donors and also sent the money back to the donors account, according to Deccan Herald. These parties, as the earlier reports suggested, were not engaged in any political activity, and had sent the money back after deducting a commission, the police reportedly alleged.
This is a common practice operating in close alignment with the political landscape of the country. Speaking to NewsGram last month—after the revelations made by BBC News Hindi’s report on the RUPPs—Political Commentator Munish Kumar Raizada, stated the exact same thing.
“Political Parties are exempted from taxation, which opens the space for a lot of people to direct their funds through these channels. Let us say, there is a big businessman who wants to divert their funds and reduce their tax charges, they would essentially donate to these parties and channelize their money.”Political Commentator Munish Kumar Raizada
A month later, it is the exact case over which these RUPPs have been booked by the Gujarat police. The donors in this way claimed tax deductions, which was used to defraud the government, the Gujarat police FIR noted.
According to the report by The Indian Express, the police have detailed their party-specific allegations in their complaint.
Of the three, Bharatiya National Janata Dal has allegedly committed the biggest fraud. According to the FIR, it has allegedly received Rs 1,143 crore from about 56,238 donors, kept a 2% to 10% commission, and routed the money back. This act has led to an alleged tax loss of around Rs 343 crore, reported The Indian Express.
Up next, is the Swatantrata Abhivyakti Party, which allegedly received Rs 519 crore, causing a loss of Rs 155 crore to the government. The Garib Kalyan Party caused an alleged loss of around Rs 62 crore, and had received Rs 206.7 crore in donations.
See Also: How Much Does the BJP Earn in Interest From Its Bank Account? The Figures Will Shock You.
The FIR also tracked various individuals associated with the parties. In the complaint against Bharatiya National Janata Dal, its President, Surendrakumar Vishnubhai Gajera, is cited as the “main accused and lynchpin” who reportedly determined the rates of commission. Other members of the party include Vipul Solanki (general secretary), Ronaksinh Chavda (treasurer) and Adil Saiyed (auditor).
Mehul Kumar Kumar Maheshkumar Khatri, Surendrasinh Parshottamdas Tiwari and chartered accountant (CA) Mukundbhai Chandansinh Rathod, from the Swatantrata Abhivyakti Party have been booked.
Similarly, leaders of the Garib Kalyan Party have been booked too. President Neeraj Kumar Kshatriya, Secretary Dhananjay Singh Rajput, treasurer Dhiraj Kumar Kshatriya, office-bearers Avinash chandrakant Tiwari and Pradip Singh Parihar, and CA Kuldeepchandan Parvatsinh Tapariya, Ashokkumar Radheshyam shah and Pankaj Agarwal have been booked, according to the report by The Indian Express.
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