CNN —A record quantity of bribes, including cash, booze, drugs and precious metals, has been seized by Indian election authorities in the run-up to mammoth nationwide polls that begin on Friday. The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday revealed it had recovered inducements worth just over $550 million since March — the largest amount in the country’s 75-year electoral history. It marks a “sharp increase” on the more than $400 million in bribes seized by the ECI in the country’s last general election in 2019, the agency said. India’s political parties and leaders routinely preach against election corruption and inducements, but the level of monitoring and tackling of graft across such a vast nation varies widely. Anti-corruption groups had long complained that the system meant a lack of transparency in donations to political parties — allowing corporations to donate large sums without disclosure.

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Persons: Narendra Modi, gratis, Modi, ” Organizations: CNN, of India, Bharatiya Janta Party, BJP, “, Indian National Congress, India, Kazakhstan, India’s, Bank of India Locations: Rajasthan, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Lok, Maldives