Odisha assembly polls: 126 'crorepati' candidates in third phase

With 126 candidates in the fray for the third phase of assembly elections in Odisha being crorepatis, it is BJD candidate Sanatan Mahakud from the Champua segment who is the richest of those standing for election. His assets amount to Rs 227.67 crore.

Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Keonjhar, Puri and Sambalpur Lok Sabha constituencies, along with 42 assembly seats under these Lok Sabha segments, will go to polls in the sixth phase of the general elections — and the third to be held in Odisha — on 25 May.

The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Odisha Election Watch have analysed the self-sworn affidavits of 381 of the 383 candidates contesting for the 42 MLA seats in Odisha.

In a report, the ADR said there are 126 (33 per cent) crorepati candidates in the fray for the third phase of assembly polls in the state. After Sanatan Mahakud, it is an independent candidate from Ghasipura, Soumya Ranjan Patnaik, who is the second-richest candidate — he declared family assets to the tune of Rs 122.86 crore.

The third place is occupied by the BJP candidate from the Nayagarh assembly segment, Pratyusha Rajeshwari Singh, who declared both movable and immovable assets totalling Rs 120.56 crore on behalf of her family.

'The role of money power in our elections is evident from the fact that all major political parties give tickets to wealthy candidates. Among the major parties, 36 out of 42 candidates analysed from BJD, 29 from Congress, 28 from BJP and four from AAP have declared assets valued at more than Rs 1 crore,' the report said.

The average assets per candidate contesting in the Odisha assembly elections 2024 (phase III) is Rs 3.47 crore.

The three candidates with the least assets are Samruddha Odisha's Kailash Chandra Nayak (Rs 1,000) contesting from the Baramba MLA segment, independent candidate Sukanta Ghadai (Rs 2,000) from Brahmagiri and CPI(ML) Red Star nominee Gopinath Nayak (Rs 2,000) from Bhubaneswar North, the report said.

Out of the 381 candidates analysed, 100 also have declared criminal cases against them, among whom 86 face serious criminal charges.

Among the major parties, 23 BJP candidates, one CPI(M) candidate, 13 Congress candidates and 12 BJD nominees have declared serious criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.

The report further said that 155 candidates have declared their educational qualifications to be between 5th and 12th standard, while 210 candidates are graduates or above. Another 12 candidates are diploma holders, but two candidates have declared themselves to be 'just literate' and another two candidates are illiterate.