BANGALORE: Prior to the polls, the National Election Watch (NEW) and Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) conducted detailed analyses of the candidates' economic status, criminal background, age and qualification. As per the analysis, here are the 10 wealthiest candidates fielding for the 16th Lok Sabha polls.
Nandan Nilekani: Bangalore South Congress candidate, Nandan Nilekani, the former UIDAI Chairman with assets worth 7, 700 crore, emerges as the richest candidate contesting in the upcoming LS polls. Nilekani said out of his overall assets, almost 80 percent of the wealth remains in Infosys shares, where he still owns 1.45 percent and his wife, Rohini 1.3 percent. "This wealth was created, while Infosys brought lakhs of jobs to Bangalore.
The company also shared a lot of wealth with our employees through ESOPs," said Nilekani. "I started out with 200 in my pocket, when I graduated from IIT. We founded the Infosys with 10,000," Nilekani and Rohini said in a statement issued to declare their assets. Apart from the huge assets, Nilekani said: "The biggest thing the money Infosys brought me is the freedom to do what I want. And what I want, is to give millions more the opportunities I had," reports TOI. He is taking on Bharatiya Janata Party's five-time MP HN Ananthakumar, who has been winning the seat since 1996.