Congress donations fall nearly 75%, sharpest decline in a decade

A comparison with the preceding 12 financial years shows that the last steeper fall was in 2015-16, when Congress’ disclosed donations dropped roughly 86% from ₹141.46 crore the previous year. File

The Congress party's receipts from donations above ₹20,000 plunged nearly 75% to ₹130.69 crore in 2025-26, the steepest annual fall in such contributions in a decade, an analysis of the party's filings with the Election Commission shows.

The party had received ₹517.39 crore in such contributions in 2024-25, according to its 2024-25 contribution report submitted to the commission.

A comparison with the preceding 12 financial years shows that the last steeper fall was in 2015-16, when Congress' disclosed donations dropped roughly 86% from ₹141.46 crore the previous year.

The latest decline follows two years of higher collections. Congress received ₹281.48 crore in disclosed donations in 2023-24, rising to ₹517.39 crore in 2024-25, the year Lok Sabha elections were held.

BJP received ₹6,074.02 crore in donations exceeding ₹20,000 in 2024-25, nearly 12 times Congress's collection. BJP's corresponding figure for 2025-26 is not available as the party's contribution report has not been made public by the ECI yet.

The BJP collected more than the Congress in each of the 12 financial years examined.

Funding through Prudent Electoral Trust accounted for a substantial part of Congress' latest decline. The trust's contribution fell from ₹216.34 crore in 2024-25 to ₹25 crore in 2025-26, a drop of about 88%.

Prudent was the only electoral trust listed in the party's latest contribution report.

Among other large contributors were Star Cement, which gave ₹5 crore, Sajjan Bhajanka, who contributed ₹4 crore, and Prem Kumar Bhajanka, who donated ₹2 crore.

The Congress' 2025-26 fund collection, though sharply lower than the previous year, was not its lowest over the period examined.

Its disclosed donations were lower in several earlier years, including ₹74.52 crore in 2020-21, ₹95.46 crore in 2021-22 and ₹79.92 crore in 2022-23.

These figures exclude electoral bonds, which were reported separately when the scheme operated. Including bond receipts in the earlier years, the Congress' latest collection in 2025-26 was its lowest since 2020-21.

The contribution report does not show the party's total income, which also includes smaller donations, membership fees, coupon collections and interest.

The Congress' audited account for 2025-26, which has not been uploaded yet, is needed to establish its overall financial position. In 2024-25, coupon collections alone brought the party ₹350.12 crore.

Indian National Congress / political parties / India