Liberals questioning Ruby Dhalla campaign over $21K in donations

Liberal leadership hopeful Ruby Dhalla is pushing back against claims of impropriety as the party freezes $21,000 in donations to her campaign. The funds are being held amid an investigation into whether 12 of Dhalla’s donors exceeded the maximum contribution limit.

The Liberal Party stated that when multiple maximum donations are made using the same credit card, they reach out to confirm that the contributions were authorized by both co-donors on a joint bank account. Canadian election laws allow couples to make separate donations through a shared credit card.

Elections Canada recently released donation data for the ongoing leadership race, revealing Dhalla trailing behind her competitors with $144,880 raised from 109 contributors. However, the data also included a list of 12 donations marked as “Contributions returned to Contributors or Remitted to the Chief Electoral Officer,” with all donors reaching the $1,750 legal limit.

Dhalla’s campaign initially mentioned that they were unable to collect the $21,000 in question due to missing attestation paperwork from donors. They stated that the party had sent the necessary forms to contributors and would make a decision upon receiving them to either release the funds to Dhalla’s team or refund them to donors.

Further explanations provided by the campaign included instances where couples mistakenly used the campaign’s donation link instead of the official Liberal Party link, resulting in refunds and redirection to the correct platform. The party emphasized that completing attestation forms is standard procedure for all election campaigns.

Amidst the donation controversy, allegations of foreign interference surfaced in a report by The Globe and Mail, prompting denials from both the Party and Dhalla. The campaign vehemently refuted the claims, attributing them to a deliberate attempt to smear Dhalla’s reputation due to her Indian heritage.

Dhalla, a former Liberal MP, has been active in Indian politics during her time away from Parliament, supporting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party. While her past affiliations have raised eyebrows, her campaign asserts that her focus remains on Canada and Canadians, with no ties to the Modi government or foreign interference.

In conclusion, the ongoing scrutiny surrounding Dhalla’s campaign underscores the complexities of political fundraising and the need for transparency in the electoral process. As the Liberal leadership race continues, it remains to be seen how these issues will impact Dhalla’s candidacy and the broader political landscape.