71 newly elected Jharkhand MLAs are crorepatis

Mail News Service

Jamshedpur, Nov 26: A report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Jharkhand Election Watch reveals that a significant 89% of the newly elected MLAs in the 2024 Jharkhand Assembly are crorepatis. Out of the 81 MLAs, 71 have declared assets worth over Rs 1 crore. This is a marked increase from 2019 when 56 MLAs were crorepatis, and from 2014, when the number stood at 41. According to the analysis, the richest MLA is Congress’ Rameshwar Oraon, elected from Lohardaga, who has assets worth Rs 42.20 crore. On the other end of the spectrum, Jairam Mahto, elected from Dumri on a JLKM ticket, has declared assets worth a mere Rs 2.55 lakh, making him the poorest MLA.

The average assets of the 2024 batch of winning candidates stand at Rs 6.90 crore, a significant rise from Rs 3.87 crore in the 2019 elections. BJP’s Kushwaha Shashi Bhushan Mehta, who won from Panki, is the second wealthiest MLA with assets of Rs 32.15 crore. RJD’s Sanjay Prasad Yadav, who was elected from Godda, ranks third with Rs 29.59 crore in assets. The report also highlights that 14 newly elected MLAs have liabilities of Rs 1 crore or more.

The wealth distribution among political parties shows that JMM has the highest number of crorepatis, with 28 of its MLAs declaring assets above Rs 1 crore. The BJP follows closely with 20 crorepati MLAs, while Congress has 14, RJD has 4, and other smaller parties like CPI(ML), LJP, JDU, and AJSU Party have a combined total of 5 crorepatis.

The report also sheds light on the educational qualifications of the new MLAs. While 28 have declared educational qualifications between class eight and 12th, 50 MLAs are graduates or have higher qualifications. There is also one MLA who is only literate. The number of female MLAs in the assembly has increased from 10 in 2019 to 12 in 2024, reflecting a modest but positive change in gender representation.

In terms of wealth growth, 42 re-elected MLAs saw an average asset increase of Rs 2.71 crore over the past five years, highlighting the growing wealth among long-standing legislators. The rise in the number of crorepati MLAs also signals a growing economic divide among the representatives, with a clear concentration of wealth in the hands of a few. This trend is indicative of the increasing financial power that continues to shape Jharkhand’s political landscape.