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Electoral Bonds Scheme Was Introduced To End Black Money In Politics: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah also said he fully respects the Supreme Court order on electoral bonds.

PTI
Union Home Minister Amit Shah | Photo: PTI
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Union Home Minister Amit Shah has said the scheme of electoral bonds was introduced to end black money in politics.

Shah added he fully respects the Supreme Court order on electoral bonds.

He added the scheme of electoral bonds should have been improved rather than scrapped.

Shah also said the one nation, one election is the concept of the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and when it will be implemented, it will ensure faster development and end recurring expenditure, PTI report mentioned.

"Electoral bonds were introduced to end the influence of black money in Indian politics. Everyone has to accept the decision given by the Supreme Court. I fully respect the Supreme Court decision. But I feel that instead of completely scrapping the electoral bonds, it should have been improved," the report quoted Shah as having said.

He also targeted Congress saying the leaders of the opposition party used to take political donation in cash because out of a donation of Rs 1,100, they used to deposit Rs 100 in the name of the party and keep Rs 1,000 in their own pockets.

"The Congress party has run this system for years," he was quoted as saying.

Shah said it has been said the electoral bonds have benefitted the BJP and Rahul Gandhi has made a statement that it is the biggest extortion activity.

"I want to make my stance clear about it. Out of the total Rs 20,000 crore electoral bonds, the BJP has got approximately Rs 6,000 crore. Where did the rest of the bonds go? TMC has got Rs 1,600 crore, Congress got Rs 1,400 crore, BRS got Rs 1,200 crore, BJD got Rs 750 crore and DMK got Rs 639 crore,” he was quoted as saying.

He added: "We have got Rs 6,000 crore despite having 303 MPs and the rest got Rs 14,000 crore against 242 MPs. What is the hue and cry about? I can say that once the accounts are settled they will not be able to face you all," he said as per the report.

On the one nation, one election proposal, Shah said that due to elections taking place many times across the country, a large amount of money is spent on conducting polls.

According to the report, he said most importantly due to the imposition of the Model Code of Conduct, decision making of the government has been adversely affected and hence development work is stalled.

"The idea of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP behind one nation, one election is that elections are held again and again in this country and the people are busy in elections and this leads to repeated expenditure,” he was quoted as saying.

"Due to the model code of conduct, many development works come to a halt. One nation, one election is a solution for this," he said as per the report.

On the seat-sharing talks in Bihar, Shah as per the report stated that everything will be settled in next one week.

"Everyone is united in NDA in Bihar and this time NDA will win all the seats in Bihar under the leadership of Bharatiya Janata Party," he said as per the report.

Commenting on Delhi, where the Congress and the AAP joined hands to flight the polls, he said the BJP got more than 50 per cent votes in all seats of Delhi in the last two Lok Sabha polls and it is going to increase its vote share this time, the report stated.

"We are least bothered what they do in the remaining 49 per cent," he was quoted as saying.

Shah reiterated Prime Minister Modi's statement that the BJP will get more than 370 seats and the NDA over 400 seats, the report mentioned.

"We have a track record of 10 years and an agenda for the next 25 years. It is an agenda to create a great India and that is why the public is putting faith in us," he was quoted as saying.