The cumulative assets of 223 MLAs from Karnataka, amounting to ₹14,359 crore, are more than the individual yearly budgets of Mizoram and Sikkim.

The cumulative assets of 223 MLAs from Karnataka, amounting to ₹14,359 crores, are more than the individual yearly budgets of Mizoram and Sikkim, according to a joint report released by the Association For Democratic Reforms (ADR) and the National Election Watch (NEW) based on the self-sworn affidavits of sitting MLAs in state assemblies and union territories across the nation.

At ₹54,545 crore, the 223 Karnataka MLAs constitute 26% of the combined assets of all 4,001 sitting MLAs in India. Maharashtra was at a distant second after Karnataka. The assets of all its 284 MLAs stood at ₹6,679 crore and Andhra Pradesh stood third in the list, whose 174 MLAs have assets amounting to ₹4,914 crore.

Data of 4,001 MLAs out of 4,033 analysed

The data is a continuation of the report released on July 15, 2023 based on the affidavits filed by the MLAs ahead of the last elections to the Karnataka assembly. Across 28 assemblies and 2 Union Territories, the information of 4,001 MLAs out of 4,033 have been analysed.

Strikingly the income of the 226 MLAs (₹14,359 crores) from Karnataka all put together is 26% of the income of all the 4001 (₹54,545 crores) sitting MLAs in India. The ₹14,359 crores total income of the MLAs from Karnataka is more than the combined assets of incumbent MLAs of Rajasthan, Punjab, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Meghalaya, Odisha, Assam, Nagaland, Uttarakhand, Kerala, Puducherry, Jharkhand, Sikkim, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura, which stands at ₹13,976 crore.

The lower end of the pyramid

In the report, Tripura is the state with the lowest combined assets of all the MLAs. The combined assets of all the 59 MLAs in the state is ₹90 crore, followed by Mizoram whose 40 MLAs together account for total assets amounting to ₹160 crore. The 60 MLAs from the Manipur assembly collectively own ₹225 crore of assets.

Notably, the total assets of 4001 sitting MLAs, which stands at ₹54,545 crore surpasses the annual budget (₹49,103 crore) of Nagaland, Mizoram, and Sikkim, as per the budgetary figures for FY 2023-24.

MLAs of the BJP have the highest amount of assets in total across India. The 1,356 BJP MLAs from all the states in India own assets adding up to ₹16,234 crore. Congress comes a close second. 719 INC MLAs reported they own ₹15,798 crore in total followed by 146 YSRCP MLAs (₹3,379 crore crore) and 131 DMK MLAs (₹1,663 crore) and 161 AAP MLAs (₹1,642 crore).