GENERAL SECRETARY'S LETTER NO. 217

Summary

This January 1970 Swatantra Party circular, signed by General Secretary R. C. Cooper, sets out a decentralised system for financing party work after legislation barred company contributions to political parties. It assigns fundraising responsibilities to State Executives, District Committees, and Primary Units, and recommends local fund-raising committees, regularly updated donor lists, active-worker involvement, and the principle of collecting according to contributors’ capacity to pay.

The circular proposes detailed targets: Rs 3,000 per month for a State Executive, Rs 600 for a District Committee, and Rs 100 for a Primary Unit. Suggested sources include recurring contributions from businesses and sympathisers, sales of party literature, collection boxes, an annual Flag Day, small civic contributions following grievance assistance, committee-member donations, subscription dinners, and souvenir advertisements. It also discusses the tax treatment of political-party donations, citing Finance Ministry and income-tax guidance that donations and subscriptions are not taxable income, while income from property or investments remains taxable. The packet concludes with a March 1970 Bombay-region response stating that several measures are already in practice, followed by handwritten copies and notes concerning implementation.

Key points

• The circular responds to the legal prohibition on company contributions by distributing fundraising across the party’s organisational structure.
• State, district, and primary-level units are instructed to establish fund-raising committees and maintain current lists of potential individual and institutional donors.
• Monthly targets are set at Rs 3,000 for State Executives, Rs 600 for District Committees, and Rs 100 for Primary Units.
• The proposed methods include recurring contributions, bank orders, literature sales, collection boxes, Flag Day drives, subscription dinners, and souvenir advertisements.
• The circular recommends that contributions reflect the donor’s capacity to pay and stresses that small donations can accumulate into substantial sums.
• A section on taxation distinguishes non-taxable donations and subscriptions from taxable income derived from property, interest, or investments.
• The Bombay-region response reports that fund-raising committees, donor lists, box collections, and plans for an annual Flag week were already receiving attention.