Political parties are sourcing a major chunk of their funds from unidentified donors, according to their income-tax returns. Donors' lists and tax returns filed by the Congress, BJP, NCP and BSP for the past five years show they have not identified those who account for most of their funding.

For instance, the Congress collected at least Rs 978 crore through sale of coupons in the five years till 2008-09, for which it has not provided any contributors' list to authorities. In comparison, contributions collected by the ruling party with donors' names account for a mere Rs 85 crore in the same period. The BJP, which has not proved as successful in gathering funds while in opposition, has made Rs 30 crore through sale of its Ajivan Sahyog Nidhi coupons in the five years between 2005 and 2009. In comparison, it has recieved Rs 95 crore from identified donors.
   
The BSP, despite its smaller size, has been more successful and innovative in its collection of funds. The party received more than Rs 200 crore through cash donations in just two years (2007-08 and 2008-09). It has not made any disclosure about who its contributors are, claiming that all donations received by it are below Rs 20,000. When I-T authorities tried to unearth the identities of its donors, the BSP successfully argued that all its contributions in cash are made by poor supporters, out of love and affection for the party leader.
   
The Representation of People Act states that political parties are required to submit details of contributions received in excess of Rs 20,000 from any person or a company. Those familiar with the issue feel that it is no coincidence that most of the donations don't exceed Rs 20,000 and thus contributors remain unidentified. While the I-T department finds nothing amiss about it, the pattern of parties getting funds from people who wish to stay anonymous has engaged the attention of anti-graft campaigners.