More than a third of all candidates contesting in phase six of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections have declared assets of at least Rs 1 crore. The polling on Friday will witness a contest where out of 866 candidates in the fray, 338 are "crorepatis", according to analysis by the non-profit Association for Democratic Reforms.
Among them, 120 candidates have wealth of Rs 5 crore and above, while 114 are worth between Rs 2 crore and Rs 5 crore. The average asset per candidate contesting the May 25 election is Rs 6.21 crore.
All candidates fielded by the Biju Janata Dal, Janata Dal (United) and Rashtriya Janata Dal are "crorepatis"—or those with assets valued at Rs 10 million or more.
On the other hand, 48 out of 51 candidates from the Bharatiya Janata Party, 20 out of 25 candidates from Congress, 11 out of 12 candidates from the Samajwadi Party, and seven out of nine candidates analysed from the Trinamool Congress have declared assets worth more than Rs 1 crore.
The data is sourced after analysis of the self-sworn affidavits of 866 out of 869 candidates in the sixth phase of the Parliamentary elections in seven states by the ADR and The National Election Watch.
In the first phase, held on April 19, 28% contesting candidates possessed wealth of Rs 1 crore and above; while in the second round, 33% were "crorepatis"; and in the third, 29%; in the fourth, 28%; and in the fifth, 33%.
(Source: ADR)
(Source: ADR)
Phase 6: Three Richest Candidates
Industrialist Naveen Jindal, who is fighting the polls from Haryana's Kurukshetra on a BJP ticket, is the richest candidate with assets worth Rs 1,241 crore. This includes Rs 1,230 crore in moveable assets. Jindal, the chairman of Jindal Steel and Power Ltd., was formerly with the Indian National Congress.
BJD's Santrupt Misra, a top executive at the Aditya Birla Group, is worth Rs 482 crore. He is contesting from Cuttack and is also the richest Lok Sabha candidate from Odisha.
Jindal's rival candidate from Kurukshetra, Dr Sushil Gupta of the AAP, is the third-richest candidate in Phase 6 with a declared wealth of Rs 169 crore.
Industrialist Naveen Jindal, who is fighting the polls from Haryana's Kurukshetra on a BJP ticket, is the richest candidate with assets worth Rs 1,241 crore. (Source: X profile)
Industrialist Naveen Jindal, who is fighting the polls from Haryana's Kurukshetra on a BJP ticket, is the richest candidate with assets worth Rs 1,241 crore. (Source: X profile)
Among major parties, the average assets per candidate for six BJD candidates is Rs 95.7 crore, five AAP candidates is Rs 43.3 crore, 25 Congress candidates is Rs 15 crore, while for 51 BJP candidates, it is Rs 42.2 crore.
Candidates With Criminal Cases
The data released also shows that 180 (21%) out of 866 candidates have declared criminal cases against themselves—141 have serious criminal cases and seven are convicts, the ADR report said.
Among the major parties, all candidates fielded by AAP and RJD have declared criminal cases against them, while nine out of 12 candidates from Samajwadi Party, eight out of 25 from Congress, and 28 out of 51 candidates from BJP have criminal cases.
Moreover, 35 out of 57 constituencies are red-alert constituencies—where three or more contesting candidates have declared criminal cases against themselves—in Phase 6.
Dr Sushil Gupta of the AAP, is the third-richest candidate in phase 6 with a declared wealth of Rs 169 crore. (Source: X profile)
Dr Sushil Gupta of the AAP, is the third-richest candidate in phase 6 with a declared wealth of Rs 169 crore. (Source: X profile)
States In Focus For Phase 6 — 58 Seats
Bihar (8/40)
Haryana (10/10)
Jharkhand (4/14)
Odisha (6/21)
Uttar Pradesh (14/80)
West Bengal (8/42)
Delhi (7/7)
Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag-Rajouri seat, where polling was rescheduled earlier.
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