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Narendra Modi Spent How Many Millions In The 2014 Election?

By JenniferP
Published on: 05:04 PST, Jan 16, 2015

Narendra Modi won the 2014 elections, but it wasn’t easy. According to Quartz, Narendra Modi, who is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, or the BJP, “broke the bank” by spending $115 million.

News of how much Modi and his party spent came out Monday in a report they had to file with the Election Commission of India.

With the release of this report, it also became evident that Modi and the BJP spent $32 million more than the opposing party, the Congress Party. Also, the total spent this year for just the BJP equals what both parties put together spent in the 2009 elections.

So where exactly did all this money come from and go to?

According to The Hindu, Modi and his party were accused by his opponents as Rahul Gandhi questioned, “They (BJP) do politics of two—three corporates as they gift them mota paisa (hefty money). From where is the money for big cutouts and posters coming?”

Modi and his party denied it without specifically answering from where they received this large amount of money.

How you could possibly spend that much money for a campaign? In two words – media advertising.

Quartz identifies the two companies who received the majority of the money – Madison World, Modi and his party’s media planner, and Saarthi Airways, Modi’s “chartered aviation provider.”

Quartz calls this election the “most expensive election campaign in the history of Indian democracy.”

Although there was $115 million listed in the report, it is possible that even more was spent by Modi and his party. Quartz admits that these elections are “awash with black money” and that the “expenditure could be much, much higher.”

While people are quick to criticize Modi and his party for the amount of money they spent and just where they spent it, Modi has made a positive impact on India in a few ways.

The Prime Minister of India has “maintained a laser focus on the economy” according to NDTV.

Modi has also had an impact on the younger generation due to his technological savviness. Modi has over 9 million followers on Twitter and tweets multiple times a day, staying in constant contact with the people he serves.

No matter what good he has done, people still question Modi. There is one thing that people won’t question, though, and that is that Narendra Modi has spent an insanely large amount of money on this past election.

[Photo Courtesy of Wikimedia]

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