Least number of crorepati candidates from Seeman’s NTK against AIADMK’s ‘rich’ list

In the 38 seats contested by the NTK in the state, only 13 candidates (34 per cent) have declared their assets worth over Rs one crore in their affidavits submitted to the Election Commission. This is the lowest percentage of crorepati candidates fielded by any party or alliance in the state.

Among the NTK candidates, M Sivajothi from Chidambaram and SS Mathivanan from Tenkasi have declared zero assets in their affidavits, while another candidate, Sivaranjini of Kancheepuram has declared his assets worth only Rs 15,014. All these three Lok Sabha seats are reserved constituencies. The richest NTK candidate is actor A Mansoorali Khan, who is contesting from Dindigul, with assets worth Rs 5.47 crore.

Interestingly, the NTK was the only party in the state to give 50 per cent representation to women candidates in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. Of the total 39 seats in TN, it has nominated 19 women candidates. With the rejection of the nomination of its Nilgiris candidate, 18 women candidates are in the fray now. Of them, only one woman candidate – MK Seethalakshmi of Erode constituency – has declared assets worth over Rs one crore.

Actor-politician Kamal Haasan’s Makkal Needhi Maiam comes second to the NTK, with 21 crorepati candidates (53 per cent) of the total 37 nominees field by the party. The AIADMK-led alliance has the highest number of crorepati candidates – 38 of the total 39 nominees have declared assets over Rs one crore. The DMK-led alliance has 33 crorepati candidates while TTV Dhinakaran’s Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam has 30 crorepati candidates.

The number of crorepati candidates nominated by the major political parties in the Lok Sabha elections has gone up this time as compared to the last general elections in 2014. The AIADMK and DMK alliances together have nominated 91 per cent of the crorepati candidates this year.

As per the affidavit filed by the candidates, 74 per cent of the candidates fielded by the DMK, the AIADMK, the Congress and the DMDK were crorepatis in 2014, when compared to 55 per cent in the 2009 polls.