Meet the top 10: lakshmi mittal bought 10% of bonds purchased by individuals
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In October 2022, Prime Minister Modi decided to use the occasion of Diwali to congratulate India’s citizens for the expansion of the ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India plant in Gujarat’s
Hazira. An odd choice for a festive event, but _Modi explained_ that the plant would open “many doors of new possibilities” to move India towards self-reliance. The plant in question is
India’s largest, set up as a joint venture between Lakshmi Mittal’s ArcelorMittal and Japan’s Nippon Steel Corporation. The joint venture was _announced in 2019_, the same year that Mittal
purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 35 crore, as per data released by the Election Commission on March 14. The EC listed 1,313 donors of which 368 are individuals, not companies. And Mittal
leads the pack of individual donors who collectively bought electoral bonds worth Rs 378 crore. Importantly, the top 10 individuals purchased bonds worth Rs 172 crore – 45 percent of the
total bought by individuals. They’re businessmen spanning sectors like aviation, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and communication, though some of the 10 are fairly obscure. Here’s the list.
#1: LAKSHMI MITTAL The 73-year-old steel magnate himself accounts for 9.2 percent of all electoral bonds purchased by individuals, purchasing 35 bonds of Rs 1 crore each on April 8, 2019.
This window of purchase was just ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, which the BJP was tipped to win – and win it did. Two years later, ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel submitted a “wish list” to
the Gujarat CM’s office for “expected assistance” to expand the plant. The company also signed a Rs 1,600 crore investment deal with the state government last year, and an MoU this year to
further expand the plant. Mittal, who lives in London, _sparked a controversy_ after he made donations to the Labour Party in 2001 and 2007. The first time, he gave the party 125,000 pounds.
The second time, he donated two million pounds, #2: LAXMIDAS VALLABH ASMITA MERCHA __The Reporters Collective__ identified “Mercha” as Laxmidas Vallabhdas Merchant and one Asmita
Merchant, who are “related to each other”. Merchant is the group controller at Reliance Industries. He purchased electoral bonds of Rs 25 crore in November 2023. The report said he’s also a
director in at least six companies linked to Reliance’s takeover of the _Network18_ conglomerate.