Maharashtra polls: Mahayuti, MVA candidates see big wealth rise ahead of elections
A day before Maharashtra's scheduled Assembly polls, a report today revealed that candidates from the Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliances have built their assets substantially during the five years leading up to the polls. While the affidavits of Mahayuti candidates indicate an average increase of 59% in their wealth, MVA candidates have logged a modestly 18% growth.
Mahayuti candidates in Mumbai saw their average values of assets rise by an astonishing 150%, three times more than MVA candidates, whose average went up by just 20%. Thus, for example, the average Mahayuti candidate's assets increased from ₹62.5 crores in 2019 to ₹156.4 crores in 2024. MVA candidates, on the other hand, saw their assets grow from ₹27.3 crores in 2019 to ₹32.8 crores in 2024.
17-fold more growth in wealth for Mahayuti candidates
The report further underlines the contrasts that are there between such candidates and the average citizen of India. In comparison to his average Indian counterpart whose wealth increased only 0.7 percent over the last four years, Mahayuti candidates' wealth had increased 17 times more than that. While MVA candidates have lagged behind Mahayuti, they actually surpassed their average Indian counterpart with a fivefold increase in asset value.
Biggest Gainers and Notables Leaders
The report has found Mahadev Ghatak of Shiv Sena at Bhiwandi Rural as one who registered the highest growth in assets, an impressive 1,724% of growth. Sanjay Shirsat of Shiv Sena at Aurangabad West stands second with a 663% rise in his assets.
Three BJP leaders have topped the list of richest contestants:
Parag Shah, Ghatkopar East ₹3,383.07 crore
Prashant Thakur, Panvel ₹475.86 crore
Mangal Prabhat Lodha (Malabar Hill) - ₹447.1 cr Others in top category include Pratap Sarnaik, Abu Azmi, Milind Deora, Shaina NC, Rahul Narvekar, Shivrendra Raje Bhosale, Deepak Kesarkar, and Ajit Pawar.
This data, which is based on affidavits submitted during the filing of nomination papers, indicates that the pattern in Maharashtra is one of the concentration of wealth among the candidates of major alliances, with Mahayuti candidates showing particularly sharp financial growth. As Maharashtra is about to head for the polls, this financial profiling would be at the center of focus by voters and analysts.
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