93% of Lok Sabha poll winners are millionaires, says report

New Delhi Jun 6 (PTI) A staggering 93 per cent of the candidates who won the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are millionaires, up from 88 per cent in 2019, according to an analysis by poll rights body Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR).

The top three wealthiest candidates are TDP's Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani from Andhra Pradesh's Guntur constituency with assets worth ₹ 5,705 crore, BJP's Konda Vishweshwar Reddy from Telangana's Chevella with total assets amounting to ₹ 4,568 crore and BJP's Naveen Jindal from Haryana's Kurukshetra with assets worth ₹ 1,241 crore.

Out of the 543 winning candidates, 504 are millionaires, the analysis found.

In 2019, 475 (88 per cent) winning candidates were millionaires and 443 (82 per cent) in 2014.

The trend indicates a steady climb since 2009 when only 315 (58 per cent) MPs were millionaires.

According to the analysis, 227 (95 per cent) of the BJP's 240 winning candidates, 92 (93 per cent) of the Congress' 99, 21 (95 per cent) of the DMK's 22, 27 (93 per cent) of the TMC's 29 and 34 (92 per cent) of the Samajwadi Party's 37 candidates have declared assets worth more than ₹ 1 crore.

All winning candidates of the AAP (3), the JDU (12) and the TDP (16) are millionaires, ADR data showed.

The analysis also delves into candidates' chances of winning based on their financial backgrounds.

It found that the probability of a millionaire candidate clinching victory in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections stood at 19.6 per cent, compared to a meagre 0.7 per cent for candidates with assets less than a crore.

The analysis also provides a breakdown of wealth distribution among the winning candidates.

The data showed that 42 per cent of the candidates possess assets totalling ₹ 10 crore and above.

While 19 per cent of the candidates fall within the bracket of ₹ 5 to 10 crore, 32 per cent hold assets ranging between ₹ 1 and 5 crore.

Only about 1 per cent of the winning candidates have assets worth less than ₹ 20 lakh.

Among major parties, the average assets per winning candidate vary significantly.

The TDP leads with an average of ₹ 442.26 crore per winner, followed by the BJP with ₹ 50.04 crore, the DMK with ₹ 31.22 crore, the Congress with ₹ 22.93 crore, TMC with ₹ 17.98 crore and SP with ₹ 15.24 crore.

The analysis also highlights disparities within the financial profiles of winning candidates. While some boast of substantial assets, others have relatively low worth.

For instance, BJP's Jyotirmay Singh Mahato from West Bengal's Purulia has declared assets totalling a mere ₹ 5 lakh. Similarly, TMC's Mitali Bag from West Bengal's Arambag holds assets worth ₹ 7 lakh.

Assets of SP's Priya Saroj from Uttar Pradesh's Machhlishahr are valued at ₹ 11 lakh.

In addition, the analysis identifies candidates with high liabilities.

TDP's Pemmasani tops the list with liabilities exceeding ₹ 1,038 crore. DMK's S Jagathratchakan from Tamil Nadu's Arakkonam has liabilities worth ₹ 649 crore and TDP's Prabhakar Reddy Vemireddy from Andhra Pradesh's Nellore has liabilities worth ₹ 197 crore. PTI

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Federal and is published from a syndicated feed.)