Parties likely to spend Rs.200 crore in Delhi polls: Assocham

Political parties are likely to spend around Rs.200 crore on the campaign for the Feb 7 Delhi assembly polls, with most of the spending being on advertisements in the print and electronic media, a business chamber said Thursday.

The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) said the expenditure has increased by about 30-40 percent as compared to the December 2013 assembly elections and over 60 percent of the expenses are being spent on rallies and on advertisements in the print and electronic media.

The bulk of the funds were being spent by the political parties, rather than by individual candidates, Assocham said.

"While the individual candidates are subject to expenditure ceiling, there is no threshold for the parties, a major loophole in the election law, which must be addressed," Assocham secretary general D.S. Rawat said.

Among the benefactors are television channels, newspapers, printers, social networking sites, transport providers, caterers, airlines etc.

In addition, advertising firms are responsible for mass mailings to influence voters, opposition research and graphic design of signs and pamphlets.

Consulting firms may also train campaign team members and party supporters to delegate responsibilities, points out the report.

Meanwhile, companies like Google, Twitter and Facebook are expecting their revenue to rise substantially this year as the political parties are spending large sums of money on digital media.

"Majority of parties are appealing to a younger generation of internet savvy voters. The online medium to reach voters has become a really powerful," said Rawat.