Nearly all candidates of leading parties in TN are crorepatis: report
The recent raids by EC and Income Tax officials have once again proved that candidates and parties in Tamil Nadu spend thousands of crores of rupees, and, therefore, candidates may need to be personally wealthy to stand a decent chance of winning. Bearing out this, an analysis of a report by the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) shows that nearly all Lok Sabha candidates belonging to major political parties such as AIADMK, DMK, DMDK, Congress and BJP in Tamil Nadu are crorepatis.
All the candidates of the AIADMK, the BJP and the DMDK are crorepatis, while 97% of DMK candidates and 88% of Congress candidates have assets in crores. The average wealth of the top 15 crorepati candidates of Tamil Nadu stands at ₹106 crore, according to the ADR data.
Tamil Nadu – the land of crorepati contestants
Considering that Tamil Nadu has the highest number of crorepati candidates (184) who are contesting in the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections, there may well be a connection between wealthy candidates and cash seizures in the state. Tamil Nadu accounts for nearly 20% (or ₹510 crore) of the entire assets (₹2,604 crore) seized across India so far this year, according to an Election Commission report.
The amount of cash seized this year in the state is 13 times more than what was seized in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. So far, the officials have seized ₹204 crore cash, gold worth ₹294 crore and liquor worth over ₹3 crore.
Rich independents fancy their chances
In Tamil Nadu, the number of crorepati candidates contesting in the Lok Sabha polls has jumped by 87% over the last decade. In 2009, the state featured 98 crorepati candidates as against 184 such candidates in the ongoing Lok Sabha polls 2019.
Interestingly, the number of crorepatis standing for elections as independents has shot up by 130% since 2009. While only 33 independent candidates reported assets worth over Rs 1 crore in 2009, 76 such candidates are taking part in the Lok Sabha polls 2019. Meanwhile, the number of crorepati candidates within political parties has declined. However, the average of assets per candidates has risen from ₹2.5 crore in 2014 to ₹3.46 crores in 2019.
The richest candidate standing in the Lok Sabha polls 2019 from Tamil Nadu is the founder and Chairman of Vasanth & Co Harikrishnan Vasanthakumar with assets worth over ₹417 crore. His company runs the largest retail home appliance chain with 80+ showrooms across Tamil Nadu. The total assets of Vasanthakumar, who is also the founder and Managing Director of Vasanth TV, rose by 46% over the last five years. The Congress candidate is contesting from Kanniyakumari in 2019.
New entrants to the league
This year, there have been two new entries, E Subaya and Murugesan P, in the top 10 crorepati candidates contesting in the Lok Sabha polls from Tamil Nadu. E Subaya and Murugesan P, who are contesting as independent candidates, have declared assets worth over ₹237 crore and ₹64 crore, respectively.
The assets of E Subaya, the former AIADMK member who won from Ambasamudram (Tirunelveli) in 2011, has jumped by 295% from ₹60 crore in 2011 to ₹237 crore in 2019, according to data available at the National Election Watch and ADR. Subaya, who is now a member of TTV Dinakaran’s AMMK party, holds shares in Esakki Farms and Saravana Properties.
The third richest candidate, AIADMK’s AC Shanmugam, shares a common interest with Subaya and Vasanthakumar as he is also a businessman. Shanmugam, who is now contesting as a part of the AIADMK, has business interests in hotels and technology firms. He has also provided share capital to a few firms, besides founding the Dr MGR Educational and Research Institute. His assets rose by 17% over the last five years from ₹106 crore in 2014 to ₹125 crore. This year, he was contesting from Vellore, however, the EC has cancelled polling in his constituency.
Asset multiplies exponentially for most candidates
Among other candidates with annual income above ₹1 crore, the DMDK candidate Sudhish LK reported a 80% jump in assets over five years. The film producer-turned-politician and brother-in-law of Tamil film actor and politician Vijayakanth, Sudhish, along with his wife Poornajothi, has stakes in Premier Petroleums Pvt Ltd and Ell Kay Yes. He also has a 7.55% stake in Captain Media Pvt Ltd. He is contesting from Kallakurichi constituency in the Lok Sabha elections 2019.
The independent candidate Sarubala R Thondaiman is another candidate who reported over 60% jump in his assets in five years. The assets of Thondaiman, the former mayor of Trichy and an AMMK member, went up from ₹57 crore in 2014 to over ₹92 crore this year.
The Congress candidate from Sivaganga, Karti Chidambaram, has also reported a 33% rise in his assets since 2014. Karti, the son of former finance minister P Chidambaram, has investments in various companies including Kwaliteit Floritech Pvt Ltd, Kaimakadoo Estate Pvt Ltd, Karpagambal Estate Pvt Ltd, Kapaleeswarar Estate Pvt Ltd and Karpagavalli Estate Pvt Ltd.The recent raids by EC and Income Tax officials have once again proved that candidates and parties in Tamil Nadu spend thousands of crores of rupees, and, therefore, candidates may need to be personally wealthy to stand a decent chance of winning. Bearing out this, an analysis of a report by the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) shows that nearly all Lok Sabha candidates belonging to major political parties such as AIADMK, DMK, DMDK, Congress and BJP in Tamil Nadu are crorepatis.
