CPM demands BJP crore source - 'Where did the Rs 1cr deposited in a bank in Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes on demonetisation day come from?'

TT, Calcutta, Nov. 11: The CPM today accused the BJP of having prior knowledge of the demonetisation and asked it to reveal the source of the money it deposited in Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in a Calcutta bank account on November 8.

The BJP denied the allegation of having prior information of the decision, acknowledged the deposit and said it had donation receipts and other documents to prove that the cash was not black money. The party said it was willing to share the documents with the Reserve Bank of India, income tax authorities and the Election Commission, if necessary.

The CPM's Bengal mouthpiece, Ganashakti, reported today that Rs 1 crore - in two instalments of Rs 60 lakh and Rs 40 lakh, and in notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 - was deposited in the state BJP unit's account on November 8. The report cited the account number (554510034) of the BJP at the CR Avenue branch of Indian Bank and claimed the deposits were made hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the demonetisation announcement.

Bengal CPM secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra said in a news conference that his party had documents to prove that the BJP had deposited Rs 3 crore in such notes between November 1 and 8. He sought to know from where the BJP had got the money.

"The BJP's Bengal unit is the party's weakest in the country. If it can make cash deposits adding up to Rs 3 crore every week, does it deposit Rs 156 crore in cash annually? Where do they get such money from?" asked Mishra, who is also a politburo member.

The CPM leader demanded a probe by the RBI and the Election Commission, pointing out that polls were due in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab early next year.

Bengal BJP vice-president Jaiprakash Majumdar said the CPM, desperate not to lose ground to his party, was saying things that did not make sense.

"Yes, the deposits were made, but the dates were just a coincidence. Please tell us what difference would it have made had we deposited the money after November 8. We put the money in a nationalised bank account and provided our PAN. All of it is accounted for," he said.

According to the BJP, the money had been earned from cash donations, none of which exceeded Rs 20,000. According to poll panel rules, donations higher than Rs 20,000 have to be accepted in cheques or through electronic transfers. Majumdar said the party had all the receipts and other documents and was ready to face any probe.

The state BJP vice-president said the CPM and the Trinamul Congress had earlier faced trouble explaining their funding. He cited the example of an ongoing probe by several investigating agencies on the aspects of Trinamul's funding pattern. Majumdar drew attention to a "donation" from Trinetra Consultants, which turned out to be a ghost company.

Under the Election Commission's instructions, multiple agencies are looking into the Rs 1.4 crore Trinamul received as a "donation" from Trinetra in 2014. Trinamul's national vice-president, Mukul Roy, had said the amount was a "repayable loan". But there was no reflection of the transaction in Trinetra's book of accounts.

Earlier today, BJP national president Amit Shah iterated there was no prior information with anybody, within the BJP or outside, about the demonetisation except for a few people in constitutional and administrative posts at the Centre.