BJP accounted for 45% of Lok Sabha poll expense

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In sharp contrast, the Congress spent just Rs 620 crore, which was only 18.5 per cent of the total money spent by the 32 national and regional parties, whose records were analysed by a poll rights body, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).

Together, these parties spent Rs 3,352.81 crore during the Lok Sabha and simultaneous Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha and Sikkim between March 16 and June 6, 2024.

The national parties accounted for more than Rs 2,204 crore (65.75 per cent) of this expenditure. “Of the total funds collected, national parties collected Rs 6,930.246 crore (93.08 per cent), while regional parties received Rs 515.32 crore (6.92 per cent),” the ADR report said.

The analysis is based on the mandatory expenditure statements released by all political parties, which are required to file it with the Election Commission (EC) within 90 days of a General Election and 75 days of a state poll.

The Association for Democratic Reforms also flagged transparency-related concerns. Statements from 21 parties, including the NCP, CPI, JMM and Shiv Sena (UBT), were unavailable on the EC’s website, when the report was prepared.

The expenditure statements of the RJD, LJP (RV), AJSU, KC (M) were not available for the 2024 Assembly elections contested in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh and Odisha. Meanwhile, two parties — the PDP in Jammu and Kashmir and the Kerala Congress (M) — declared zero expenditure, despite contesting the elections.

Besides, there were major delays in the submission of data by some parties. The Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) statement arrived 168 days late, while the BJP’s statement was late by 139 to 154 days, depending on the state, the ADR report found. Only the Congress submitted a consolidated report for both the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls.

Publicity expenses topped the list of expenditures as the parties spent Rs 2,008 crore (more than 53 per cent of their total declared expenditure) on it. Travel expenses came next at Rs 795 crore, followed by Rs 402 crore in lump sum payments to candidates. The parties also spent over Rs 132 crore on virtual campaigns and Rs 28 crore on publishing the criminal antecedents of their candidates.

Of the total publicity expenditure of the 32 political parties, Rs 1,511 crore (or 75.25 per cent) was spent by national parties, while Rs 496.99 crore (or 24.75 per cent) was spent by the regional parties.

Travel expenses were heavily skewed toward star campaigners. Of the Rs 795 crore spent on travel, Rs 765 crore (96.22 per cent) went towards ferrying high-profile party faces, with just Rs 30 crore spent on other leaders.

The ADR noted that a total of 690 unrecognised political parties contested in the General Election last year. One unrecognised political party contested in Arunachal Pradesh, 74 in Andhra Pradesh, 35 in Odisha and two in Sikkim Assembly polls. The expenditure statements of these parties were not analysed as part of the report.

The report said, wherever possible, expenditure must be limited to transactions via cheques or DD (demand draft) or RTGS, so as to reduce the use of black money in elections in accordance with the transparency guidelines issued by the EC. The ADR also urged the EC to appoint observers to monitor party expenditure, akin to those who track candidate spending.