Hyderabad: Contributions received in cash above Rs 20,000 by the YSR Congress in 2017-18 were seven times higher than what the Telugu Desam received.
The Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRC received Rs 8.54 crore, while donations to the TD stood at Rs 1.73 crore. The YSRC received more funds than other state-recognised parties too — the Telangana Rashtra Samiti, for example, received Rs 3.19 crore.
It is interesting to note that a large share of the pie for the YSRC came from Hyderabad and a handful from cities in AP.
Lekcon Infrastructure Pvt Ltd based in Rajendranagar in Hyderabad, run by the Lekkala family, donated the highest amount of Rs 1.50 crore. The second top contributor is Frontline Trading of Himayatnagar in Hyderabad at Rs 75 lakh, followed by Saini Enterprises of Kachiguda in Hyderabad, which contributed Rs 55 lakh.
A total of 49 contributors, including individuals, corporations, and commercial enterprises, funded the party in the previous year. Of which, 29 are based in Hyderabad, going by the addresses mentioned in the contribution audit report 2017-18, which the YSRC submitted to the EC.
The YSRC also received major funding from entities based in Rajasthan, something not seen in the contribution list of the TRS or TD, who got money mostly from home-grown parliamentarians and legislators. Funders from Rajasthan include S P Enterprises, Welcome group, and Vinayak Association, all based in Jaipur.
YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy who owns a house and commercial complexes in Bengaluru has been able to get funders based in that city. A sum of Rs 50 lakh was donated by a Bengaluru based individual and a power company.
A donor based in Kapadia Lane, Somajiguda in Hyderabad who contributed Rs 15 lakh, said, “My father was a close associate of YS Rajshekar Reddy during the Congress regime in united AP. The late Chief Minister had visited our residence too. My family have been funding the YSRC party since its inception. It is out of our personal interest.”
