A worker holds a lotus flower as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah look on during celebrations at the BJP HQ after the party won the Delhi Assembly election, in New Delhi, on February 8, 2025.
| Photo Credit: PTI
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spent ₹1,754 crore on election or general propaganda in 2023-24, the lion’s share of its expenditure that year, according to a report by the non-governmental organisation Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The Congress spent ₹619.67 crore on election-related expenses, said the report, which analysed the total income and expenditure of all six national parties as declared by them in their annual audit report submitted to the Election Commission.
Among other expenses, the BJP spent ₹349.71 crore towards administrative costs, while the Congress spent ₹340.70 crore towards administrative and general expenses.
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The Communist Party of India (Marxist) spent the maximum of ₹56.29 crore on administrative and general expenses followed by ₹47.57 crore on employee cost.
The six national parties — BJP, Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Aam Aadmi Party, and National People’s Party — declared a total income of ₹2669.86 crore from donations or contributions.
The BJP, the Congress, and the AAP collected 43.36% (₹2,524.13 crore) of their total income from donations through the now-defunct electoral bonds.
The BJP received electoral bonds worth ₹1,685.62 crore, the Congress ₹828.36 crore, and the AAP ₹10.15 crore.
The due date for submission of annual audited accounts was October, 31, 2024, but only the BSP, the NPEP, and the AAP submitted their audit reports on time. The CPI(M), the Congress, and the BJP and submitted their reports after a delay of 12 days, 53 days, and 66 days, respectively.
Published – February 25, 2025 10:51 pm IST