The world’s best businesspeople

It’s nice to see how India’s respected business barons always do the right thing by supporting the government

I don’t know what electoral bonds are. I thought I did when they were introduced a few years ago, but I was never sure, and suspect a lot of people felt that way. They became harder to understand over the past few weeks, because it felt as if the definition changed every other day depending on who was being asked about them. Luckily for us, because we have a government that believes in transparency over everything else, we were informed by one or two ministers that this whole brouhaha over those bonds was just a massive misunderstanding. Apparently, millions of us had somehow managed to get it all wrong. I just laughed at my own naiveté.

Here’s what I do know, thanks to reports from the few independent media outlets still standing: electoral bonds don’t mean anything, and India’s businesspeople continue to be the biggest patriots I have ever come across.

While a lot of people spent time trying to figure out why so many millions had been handed over to the government for no apparent reason, I realised almost instantly that our noble corporate folk had done what they always have—placing a political party over something as unimportant as profit. I imagine this was precisely why electoral bonds were invented by another patriot, a politician who unfortunately passed away a few years ago and has been forgotten about since then. Before these bonds existed, there weren’t many opportunities for businesses to show how much they cared. The reports made me proud to call myself Indian.

I suppose there were still a few people who refused to acknowledge this. Some referred to it as the biggest scam in the history of independent India, while others used words like ‘extortion’, ‘money laundering’ and ‘corruption’ that have been rendered obsolete since the most honest people in India were elected to power a few years ago. It saddened me because all I could see was something pure and heartwarming; so many companies handing over large portions of their earnings to the government out of love and affection alone. It should have been celebrated instead of questioned.

What surprised me more than anything else was how these companies supported a political party despite being under an enormous amount of stress. For example, many of them were in the process of being audited by the Enforcement Directorate and income tax departments. And yet, they found the time and money to show how much they care about things that really matter. Even companies associated with gaming and lottery services scrimped and saved to buy those bonds, making me optimistic about our collective future. Imagine being questioned about the sources of your income, but still making sure you donate to a cause you believe is just. I saw that some companies also purchased electoral bonds after bagging important contracts related to infrastructure, which prompted cynics to wonder about the possibility of quid pro quo arrangements. I dismissed them outright as minor coincidences because who has ever heard of kickbacks when it comes to infrastructure projects?

I hope the government continues to create new opportunities for companies to hand over their wealth to political parties as a way of saying thanks. I also admit to being tempted myself. I may give up my life savings to a political party too, so they can be used for important things like the procurement of wild cheetahs or the placing of red carpets under the sea for photo opportunities. Every little bit we contribute eventually goes towards nation-building, so we have much to learn from our tireless entrepreneurs and business leaders.

Another thing that pleased me was the speed at which we were granted access to this data, thanks to the competence and efficiency of a large, nationalised bank. I often wonder why I haven’t opened an account at any of our nationalised banks in decades. I’m sure they know what they’re doing, so I ought to address that issue and secure my financial future by showing them how much I trust their processes.

The most important thing we need to take away from this whole ‘electoral bonds episode’ is that our businesspeople need to be protected. They have shown, time and again, that they can be trusted to do the right thing. They have always prioritised the country’s needs over their own, and for this, they should always be rewarded. This is why I am openly pleased about so many public assets being handed over to them for safekeeping.

When he isn’t ranting about all things Mumbai, Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet. He tweets @lindsaypereira

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The views expressed in this column are the individual’s and don’t represent those of the paper

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