Ahmedabad: The Gujarat Police have registered a criminal case against the Bharatiya National Janata Dal (BNJD) and four of its office-bearers over an alleged bogus political donation racket involving Rs 1,143.85 crore and 56,238 donors, with the Income Tax Department estimating a loss of nearly Rs 343 crore to the exchequer.
The FIR was registered by the CID Crime, Gandhinagar Zone, on September 25 on the basis of complaints filed by Income Tax officials.
The case names BNJD president Surendrakumar Gajera, general secretary Vipul Solanki, treasurer Ronaksinh Chavda and chartered accountant-cum-auditor Adil Saiyed, besides the party.
The allegations have not been established by a court. According to the Income Tax complaint, the alleged transactions took place between financial years 2019-20 and 2024-25.
Taxpayers allegedly transferred money to the party through banking channels, including RTGS, and were issued donation receipts that enabled them to claim deductions available for contributions to political parties under the Income Tax Act.
Investigators allege that the funds were subsequently transferred from the party’s accounts to intermediary firms, including J Trading, Kajal Enterprises and Parmar Associates.
False bills and invoices purportedly showing purchases of foodgrains, pulses and other commodities were allegedly prepared to account for the transfers, after which the money was withdrawn in cash.
The complaint alleges that commissions ranging from 2 per cent to 10 per cent were retained and the remaining money was returned to the original donors through Angadiya channels and hawala networks.
The Income Tax Department has estimated that the arrangement resulted in an alleged direct tax loss of about Rs 343 crore.
The complaint further alleges that false accounting records and contribution reports in Form 24A were prepared and submitted to the Election Commission, presenting the purported transactions as genuine political donations.
Gajera has been described in the FIR as the alleged main accused and lynchpin of the operation. Investigators allege that he supervised the network and determined the commission rates.
Solanki is accused of coordinating donor details through messaging platforms and issuing signed donation receipts.
Searches conducted by the Income Tax Department reportedly led to the recovery of transaction records and digital communications from premises linked to Chavda.
The complaint alleges that investigators found chats with middlemen concerning the movement of money through Angadiya channels after commissions were deducted. Another report on the complaint said around 2.91 lakh receipts were allegedly recovered during the searches.
The role of Saiyed, the party’s chartered accountant and auditor, is also under investigation.
The complaint alleges that he prepared and digitally signed audit reports without properly verifying the party’s accounts and without visiting its office or examining genuine transactions.
The Income Tax Department had conducted searches at the BNJD office in Gandhinagar and premises linked to its office-bearers in November 2025.
The subsequent investigation, according to police, formed the basis of the criminal complaint.
The case has been registered under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to cheating, criminal conspiracy, forgery and use of forged documents.
BNJD is a registered unrecognised political party and has contested elections in Gujarat. Public records also show that it has reported substantial donations in its filings in earlier years.
(IANS)
