As less than two days are left for the polling for the state assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, major political parties have started taking out their money bags for distribution among the voters.
According to political observers, these elections are going to be the costliest-ever in the electoral history of Andhra Pradesh.
The tentative estimate of money spent by all the major parties together is around Rs 20,000 crore, it is believed.
Sources said on an average all the political parties together are spending more than Rs 100 crore in each assembly constituency. In some keenly fought constituencies, the estimated expenditure is more than Rs 150 crore.
As per the Election Commission of India's regulations, an MP candidate is expected to spend a maximum of Rs 95 lakh, while an MLA candidate's expenditure limit stands at Rs 40 lakh.
“But the actual expenditure is 100-150 times more,” an analyst said.
This time, both the YSR Congress party and the Telugu Desam Party are engaged in a pitched battle in several constituencies and as such the candidates are forced to spend huge amounts to win the seat.
Normally, a Lok Sabha candidate is expected to spend more than an MLA candidate in any party. In some areas, the MP candidates are supposed to bear the expenditure of the MLA candidates in the assembly segments falling under their parliamentary constituencies.
But this time, it is learnt the MP candidates are reluctant to spend money and the MLA candidates are forced to bear the expenditure of the MP candidates.
In high-profile constituencies like Visakhapatnam, the total expenditure could soar above Rs 100 crore per each candidate this time.
Notably, a Visakhapatnam LS candidate has initiated a strategy of distributing freebies such as sweet boxes and sarees during festive occasions, starting from Ganesh Chaturthi 2023.
Similarly, another LS constituency in combined Visakhapatnam district may witness more than Rs 100 core spending from a particular candidate.
Premier Lok Sabha and assembly constituencies like Kakinada, Rajahmundry, Vijayawada, Nellore, Guntur, and Kadapa may witness a record splurging this polling season.
