Number of crorepatis in fray rises; Sidhu highest earner, says report

Chandigarh : Assets and income details submitted to the Election Commission of India (ECI) by the candidates contesting state assembly elections clearly suggest that politics is fast becoming a game of crorepatis.
A report by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), an Ahmedabad-based think-tank, showed that of the 1145 candidates contesting elections, 428 (37 per cent) valued their assets in crores.Shiromani Akali Dal had the highest number of crorepatis at 87 of a total of 94 (93 per cent). Congress comes a close second at 103 of 117 candidates (88 per cent), while the Bharatiya Janata came third at 87%. The Aam Aadmi Party — an outfit that claims to be the party of “commoners” — had 71 of a total of 112 (63 per cent) crorepati candidates.Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu is the highest earner among candidates fighting the Punjab elections, the report said. Sidhu has quoted his latest tax returns to declare an annual income of Rs 9.9 crore.
At an annual income of more than Rs 5 crore, liquor baron Shiv Lal Doda — an independent from Abohar — comes second. He is also the second richest candidate in the fray if one went by assets alone.
At an annual income of Rs 2.28 crore in 2015-16, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal comes in at number three.