Delhi Polls 2025: BJP's Financial Muscle Gives An Edge, But Congress Narrows Gap

Party flags of BJP and Congress (Photo

New Delhi: In a surprising turn of events, the Congress has significantly narrowed the spending gap with the BJP in the recent Delhi Assembly elections, held in the month of February. According to the election expenditure reports submitted to the Election Commission, the BJP emerged as the top spender with an overall expenditure of Rs 57 crore. However, the Congress declared an expenditure of Rs 46.18 crore, a substantial increase from its spending in the 2020 Assembly elections.

According to a report in The Indian Express, in 2020, the BJP had spent Rs 41.06 crore, which was 48% more than the Congress's expenditure of Rs 27.67 crore. This time, the gap has narrowed, with the Congress spending just 25% less than the BJP. The BJP's expenditure report reveals that it spent Rs 39.14 crore on general party propaganda and Rs 18.5 crore on its candidates. In contrast, the Congress spent more on general party campaigning, with Rs 40.13 crore going towards propaganda and Rs 6.05 crore towards its candidates.

The BJP's dominance in spending was also evident in its digital advertising efforts. According to a previous report, the party outspent its opponents by at least three times on Meta platforms, spending Rs 4.15 crore on advertising in Delhi. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was a distant second, spending Rs 1.38 crore, while the Congress spent Rs 66.62 lakh. Notably, 91.8% of the BJP's advertising expenditure was through its Delhi unit's official handle.

The AAP, which went into the February election as the incumbent, spent the least among the three main parties, with an overall expenditure of Rs 14.51 crore. Of this, Rs 12.12 crore went towards general party propaganda, while Rs 2.39 crore was spent on candidates. In comparison, the AAP had declared Rs 21.06 crore as its overall election expenditure in 2020, the report further stated.

The BJP's financial war chest was also impressive, starting the 2025 polls with a balance of Rs 89.92 crore and receiving an additional Rs 93.42 lakh during the election period. The party ended the polls with a balance of Rs 91.1 crore. A report by the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) also revealed that the BJP's winning candidates spent more than their AAP counterparts, with 31 MLAs declaring that they had spent less than half of the permissible limit of Rs 40 lakh in their constituencies.

The increased spending by Congress suggests a more aggressive campaign strategy, which may have contributed to its performance in the elections. The BJP's expenditure pattern, on the other hand, indicates a focus on both party propaganda and candidate-centric campaigns. The Election Commission's data on election expenditure provides valuable insights into the financial muscle flexed by parties during the polls.

In the election results, the BJP emerged victorious, winning 48 of the 70 seats and returning to power in Delhi after over two-and-a-half decades. The AAP finished second with 22 seats, while the Congress failed to open its account in the capital for the third consecutive time.