New Delhi: The third largest donor is a less known company called Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited. It donated Rs 410 crores to political parties through electoral bonds, which have now been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.
Based on new evidence from company’s corporate accounts, The Reporters Collective has ascertained that the Qwik Supply Chain is part of the Reliance Group.
The company gave away Rs 360 crore to political parties in the financial year 2021-22. In the same year, its net profit was only Rs 21.72 crores. In the financial year 2023-24, the company made donations of another Rs 50 crore.
While introducing the electoral bonds scheme in 2017, the Union government had amended the laws to remove limits on how much a company can donate to political parties. Until then companies could donate only 7.5 per cent of the average profits of preceding three fiscal years.
Six companies own Qwik Supply Chain’s shares:
- Reliance Group Support Services Private Limited
- Reliance Fire Brigade Services Private Limited
- Vibrant Advertising Private Limited
- Gujarat Petcoke and Petroproducts Supply Private Limited
- Imaginationworks Production Company Private Limited
- Reliance Hospital Management Services Private Limited
Some of these companies’ affiliation is evident by their names. The Collective looked at the others such as the Gujarat Petcoke and Petroproducts Supply Private Limited. One of the directors of this company, Parimal Dhiraklal Nathwani, is a Member of the Parliament from Andhra Pradesh. A known personal associate of the Reliance Group, Nathwani’s website, Linkedin and Twitter profiles identify him as Director-Corporate Affairs at the Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)
The other Qwik Supply Chain owner we reviewed was Vibrant Advertising Private Limited. One of its directors, Tarun Jamnadas Shah is also on the board in Reliance Securities Solutions Limited.
To sum it up, Qwik Supply Chain, which donated Rs 410 crores is one of the numerous privately-held companies that make the Reliance corporate network and holdings.
Qwik Supply Chain Private Limited has three directors, Vipul Pranlal Mehta, Sridhar Titti and Tapas Mitra. Mitra is a director in 26 other companies while Mehta is in eight other companies.
The 26 companies, with Mitra as director, include partnership firms such as Reliance Eros Productions LLP and companies such as Jamnagar Kandla Pipeline Company Private Limited. The latter is registered in Ahmedabad at an address shared by several other Reliance companies, such as Reliance Paging Private Limited, Jamnagar Ratlam Pipeline Private Limited, Reliance Tankages Private limited and Reliance Oil and Petroleum Private Limited.
In his Linkedin profile, Mitra calls himself the Heads of Accounts (Consolidation) at Reliance Industries Limited who is “Currently heading Accounts and Commercial function of a number of Companies in the Group, including Subsidiary, Associate and Joint Venture Companies.”
Mehta is a director in a privately held company called Rel Icons and Traders Private Limited. The other director in the company is Mahesh Mungekar. The latter is also a director in yet other Reliance group companies, Reliance Telecom Limited and Reliance Communications Infrastructure Limited.
As reported by The News Minute, multiple other firms linked to the Reliance Group donated to political parties through electoral bonds.
UPDATE: Reliance Industries Limited spokesperson has reportedly said that, “Qwik Supply Chain Pvt Ltd is not a subsidiary of any Reliance entity.” The statment did not deny the linkages of Qwik Supply Chain to other Reliance affiliated companies or the common directors on board this web of firms.
It could not be ascertained if the ultimate beneficial ownership of the firm lies with the elder brother Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Limited or the younger brother Anil Ambani’s fallen empire. Qwik Supply Chain’s official address was affirmed at Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City, headquarters of Anil Ambani’s Reliance group.
