The BJP spent Rs 286.99 crore on the West Bengal Assembly election, exceeding the Congress’s combined expenditure of Rs 248.55 crore across five Assembly polls held earlier this year, according to expenditure statements filed with the Election Commission.
West Bengal accounted for more than half of the BJP’s total expenditure of Rs 529.38 crore on elections in West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union territory of Puducherry. The party reported spending Rs 217.16 crore on its general campaign in West Bengal and Rs 69.83 crore on candidates and associated expenses.
Of the candidate-related expenditure, Rs 58.80 crore was provided directly to candidates. The BJP’s expenditure in the other four contests was Rs 96.26 crore in Assam, Rs 82.67 crore in Kerala, Rs 51.56 crore in Tamil Nadu and Rs 11.89 crore in Puducherry.
The Congress reported total expenditure of Rs 248.55 crore across the five elections, comprising about Rs 143 crore on general campaigning and Rs 105.55 crore on candidates. Its expenditure in West Bengal was Rs 42.08 crore through the party headquarters and state unit, including Rs 12.96 crore on campaigning and Rs 29.12 crore on candidate-related expenses.
Kerala accounted for Rs 105.34 crore of the Congress expenditure, including Rs 71.30 crore on general campaigning and Rs 34.05 crore on candidates. The BJP, by comparison, spent Rs 82.67 crore in Kerala.
The CPI(M)’s West Bengal unit reported election expenditure of Rs 8.23 crore. The Trinamool Congress expenditure statement had not been made public alongside the figures cited in the available filings.
Election law places expenditure ceilings on individual candidates, while political parties themselves do not face an equivalent overall campaign spending limit. Parties are required to submit detailed post-election accounts covering campaign travel, rallies, advertising and expenditure on candidates.
