By The Sampadak Express
Congress accounted for 18.5% of the expenditure; publicity emerged as the top spending head across all parties
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accounted for the largest share of election spending during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, with expenses totaling ₹1,494 crore or 44.56% of the total amount spent by political parties, according to a new report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The analysis, released on Friday, examined the expenditure reports of 32 national and regional parties, revealing that a total of ₹3,352.81 crore was spent during the Lok Sabha and simultaneous Assembly elections held in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, and Sikkim between March 16 and June 6, 2024.
Congress a Distant Second
The Indian National Congress was the second-highest spender, incurring election costs of ₹620 crore, amounting to 18.5% of the total declared expenditure.
National parties together spent ₹2,204 crore, accounting for 65.75% of total election spending, while regional parties contributed the remaining 34.25%.
Fund Collection Skewed in Favour of National Parties
The ADR found that national parties collected a significant ₹6,930 crore (93.08%) in funds, while regional parties raised only ₹515.32 crore (6.92%).
The analysis was based on expenditure statements that political parties are required to submit to the Election Commission (EC) within 90 days of a general election and 75 days of a state poll. However, many parties submitted their reports late, with the AAP’s report delayed by 168 days and the BJP’s by up to 154 days. Only the Congress submitted a consolidated report covering both national and state elections.
Publicity Dominates Spending
Publicity was the largest expenditure category, consuming ₹2,008 crore, or over 53% of the total declared spending. Of this, national parties alone spent ₹1,511.3 crore (75.25%), while regional parties spent ₹496.99 crore (24.75%).
Travel expenses followed, with parties spending ₹795 crore, of which ₹765 crore (96.22%) was allocated to star campaigners, indicating a heavy focus on high-profile leaders.
Additional spending included:
₹402 crore in lump-sum payments to candidates
₹132 crore on virtual campaigns
₹28 crore to publish criminal antecedents of candidates
Missing Data and Transparency Concerns
The ADR flagged the non-availability of expenditure reports from 21 political parties, including the NCP, CPI, JMM, and Shiv Sena (UBT), on the EC’s website at the time of preparing the report.
Other parties such as the RJD, LJP (RV), AJSU, and KC(M) failed to submit expenditure data for the state elections held in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, and Odisha.
Alarmingly, parties like the Jammu and Kashmir PDP and Kerala Congress (M) declared zero expenditure, despite fielding candidates.
Furthermore, 690 unrecognised parties participated in the 2024 general elections and several others in state polls, but their financial data was excluded from the ADR’s analysis.
ADR Recommends Stricter Oversight
The ADR reiterated the need for enhanced transparency in political financing and called for:
All transactions to be conducted via cheques, demand drafts, or RTGS
Appointing observers to monitor party-level spending, as is currently done for individual candidates
The report underscored the urgent need for reforms in election financing to curb the influence of unaccounted money and ensure fair electoral practices.
