How BJP and Congress have spent on the elections in Karnataka

The Congress and BJP have collectedly spent Rs 335.92 crore on the last two assembly elections in Karnataka that were held in 2013 and 2018.

A statement of the expenditure submitted to the Election Commission of India (ECI), says that the Congress spent Rss 185.17 crore in the last two assembly elections, while in the case of the BJP it was Rs 150.75 crore.

The JD(S) which is the third party in the fray has not yet submitted its statement of expenditure to the ECI.

When the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was at the Centre in 2013, the Congress spent Rs 92.34 crore. The BJP which was in the Opposition at that time spent only Rs 28.07 crore.

When the NDA was in power in 2018, the BJP spent 122.68 crore. Of this nearly Rs 100.45 crore was spent by the Central unit of the party, while the state unit spent the remaining, data shows.

In 2018, the Congress which was ruling the state spent Rs 92.83 crore and the entire expenditure was borne by the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee.

A look at the data reveals that the major spend was on advertisements. The parties advertised heavily in the print, television and social media platforms.

In 2018, the BJP spent nearly 65 per cent of its total expenditure on advertisements on various platforms. In 2013, the party spent just Rs 14.49 crore.

The Congress on the other hand spent Rs 21.60 crore in 2018 and Rs 18.06 crore on advertisements in 2013.

On the expenses of the star campaigners and their travel, the BJP spent Rs 16.37 crore in 2018. This however excludes the travel by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In the same election, the Congress spent Rs 10.5 crore on the travel of its star campaigners, including Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.

In the 2013 elections, the BKP and Congress spent Rs 3.46 crore and Rs 3.44 crore on the travel of its star campaigners.