Understanding Political Finance in India

Elections in India are not only the world's largest democratic exercise but also the most expensive. To emphasise the rising costs of elections, political and campaign finance has been all over the news recently. However, much before the Supreme Court ruled on the constitutionality of the electoral bonds scheme, political scientists have long been studying the role that money plays in politics, especially how the nature of political finance has far-reaching consequences for democracy in different countries. This talk provides a historical overview of the legal and regulatory framework for political finance by looking at the political funding mechanism in India. Going over the different phases of evolution of the legislations and rules governing political finance in India, the talk will analyse the influence that different political regimes have had on the issue of political finance leading up to the Electoral Bonds. Finally, the talk will explain electoral bonds and the nature of quid pro quo that this kind of political funding mechanism entails.