While more than 80% of India’s politicians are millionaires, a few possess massive assets running into billions.
From business tycoons to royals, from lawyers to actors, here are 13 richest politicians in India in 2020 – a tumultuous year for the world economy – with staggering, jaw-dropping net worth…
13 Richest Politicians In India in 2020.
1) Savitri Jindal
Political Affiliation: Indian National Congress
State: Haryana
Net Worth: ₹46,200 Crores (source)
At 70, Savitri Jindal, is the matriarch of the Jindal group – one of India’s leading steel, power, cement and infrastructure conglomerate.
Savitri Jindal is the richest woman in India and ranks 19th on the Forbes list of 100 richest Indians.
In 2005, Ms. Jindal was elected to the Haryana State Legislative Assembly from Hisar constituency. In the previous Haryana Government, she served as the Minister of State for Revenue and Disaster Management, Consolidation, Rehabilitation and Housing and also the Minister of State for Urban Local Bodies and Housing. Revenue of the Jindal group quadrupled after she became its chairperson in 2005 (O.P. Jindal, who founded the Jindal Group, died in a helicopter crash 15 years ago).
2) Naveen Jindal
Political Affiliation: Indian National Congress
State: Haryana
Net Worth: ₹29,650 Crores (source)
50-year-old Naveen Jindal, youngest child of Savitri Jindal, currently serves as the Chairman of Jindal Steel and Power Limited and Chancellor of O. P. Jindal Global University. He was elected to the 14th and 15th Lok Sabha from the Kurukshetra constituency.
Naveen Jindal is famous for fighting a 7-year long legal battle to give the people of India their right to hoist the national flag publicly.
On 23 January 2004, the Supreme Court passed a landmark judgement allowing every Indian citizen to fly the National Flag with respect, dignity and honor, thus making it a fundamental right. Ever since, he has been strongly advocating to mark 23 January as the “National Flag Day” saying, “As Indians, we can articulate and express our relationship with the Tiranga on this day. After all, individual citizens have their own relationship with the flag.”
3) Mahendra Prasad
Political Affiliation: Janata Dal (United)
State: Bihar
Net Worth: ₹13,300 Crores (source)
80-year-old billionaire pharma tycoon from Bihar made his debut in Parliament in 1980 as a Lok Sabha member from the Jehanabad constituency – then the epicentre of a bloody battle between members of the upper castes and Naxalites. He has been a Member of Parliament from Rajya Sabha since 1985. Mr. Prasad is the founder of Indian generics maker Aristo Pharmaceuticals.
Prasad is known as ‘king Mahendra’ in Bihar as he offered jobs to locals and started a college to promote higher education among the poor and underprivileged.
The low-profile tycoon loves to travel and enjoys gardening and deep-sea diving. In 2002, he was awarded by Atlantis Submarine in West Indies for diving 173 feet into the Caribbean Sea. Mahendra Prasad ranks 73rd on the Forbes list of 100 richest Indians.
4) Jyotiraditya Scindia
Political Affiliation: Bhartiya Janata Party
State: Madhya Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹3,790 Crores (source)
A strong critic of the Narendra Modi government in its first term, Jyotiraditya Scindia joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in March this year, ending his 18-year-old association with the Congress party. He was the Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry in the UPA-II government between 2009 and 2012 as well as the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of Power between 2012 and 2014. On 19 June 2020, Mr. Scindia was elected a BJP Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh.
An MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Jyotiraditya belongs to the House of Scindia that once ruled in Gwalior.
He resides in Jai Vilas Mahal, a beautiful palace built in 1874. There are over 400 rooms in the 1,240,771-square-feet palace; it houses over 5000 books.
5) Alla Ayodhya Rami Reddy
Political Affiliation: YSR Congress Party
State: Andhra Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹2,577 Crores (source)
Industrialist Ayodhya Rami Reddy is the third richest Rajya Sabha MP in the country. Founder of Ramky Group of Companies, Mr. Reddy was elected as a Member of the Rajya Sabha on the YSR Congress Party ticket from the Narasaraopet Constituency in 2020.
6) Jaya Bachchan
Political Affiliation: Samajwadi Party
State: Uttar Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹1,001 Crores (source)
72-year-old Jaya Bachchan needs no introduction. The four-time Rajya Sabha MP from the Samajwadi Party is known for her memorable performances in blockbuster movies like Uphaar, Kora Kagaz, Zanjeer, Abhimaan, Chupke Chupke, Sholay, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, and Kal Ho Naa Ho.
In 1992, Jaya Bachchan was awarded Padma Shri; in 2007, she was also awarded the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award.
Recently, Ms. Bachchan triggered controversy after she took a veiled dig at BJP MP Ravi Kishan and actor Kangana Ranaut for speaking against the film industry and maligning its image.
Watch: Jaya Bachchan speaks out on the Drug Debate in the Parliament
7) Priya Krishna
Political Affiliation: Indian National Congress
State: Karnataka
Net Worth: ₹1020 Crores (source)
34-year-old Priya Krishna, son of former MLA and Housing Minister M. Krishnappa, is known as the youngest member of the Legislative Assembly of Karnataka. He was just 25 when he was elected as an MLA from Bengaluru’s Govindraj Nagar in 2009.
Mr. Krishna, who was the richest candidate in the fray during the 2018 Karnataka Assembly Elections with a personal wealth of over ₹1,020 crores, retained his seat in 2013 before losing to BJP’s V. Somanna in 2018.
8) Abhishek Manu Singhvi
Political Affiliation: Indian National Congress
State: West Bengal
Net Worth: ₹860 Crores (source)
61-year-old Abhishek Manu Singhvi, senior advocate of the Supreme Court, represents West Bengal in the Rajya Sabha and serves as a spokesperson for the Congress party. A Harvard University graduate, Mr. Singhvi has the unique distinction of being the youngest person to be appointed/elected Senior Advocate, Additional Solicitor General of India, and Vice-President, Supreme Court Bar Association.
The famous columnist, author and commentator has appeared in several cases that resulted in landmark decisions. For instance, he won a Supreme Court case to have President’s Rule in Uttarakhand revoked in 2016. Mr. Singhvi had also been involved in bailing out the top Congress leaders from Karti Chidambaram to the Gandhis.
9) Jayadev Galla
Political Affiliation: Telugu Desam Party
State: Andhra Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹683 Crores (source)
Managing director of the Amara Raja group in India, the company that makes Amaron batteries, 54-year-old Jayadev Galla, is known for initiating a no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government in the monsoon session of parliament in July 2018. It was the first such motion in 15 years, and Mr. Galla’s speech, where he spoke about the disappointments faced by Andhra Pradesh at the hands of both Congress and BJP, became a talking point.
Watch: Jayadev Galla speaks in Lok Sabha
A University of Illinois graduate, Mr. Galla represents the Guntur constituency. His attendance in Lok Sabha has been an impressive 84%.
10) Nakul Nath
Political Affiliation: Indian National Congress
State: Madhya Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹660 Crores (source)
Son of former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath and Chhindwara MP, Nakul Nath is the only Congress leader who survived the Modi wave in the state. The BJP won 28 of the 29 Parliamentary seats in the state while the Congress got only one.
11) Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy
Political Affiliation: YSR Congress Party
State: Andhra Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹510 Crores (source)
Son of former Andhra Pradesh chief minister, Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy, Jaganmohan Reddy was elected as Member of Parliament from Kadapa constituency as a member of the Indian National Congress in 2009. He served as leader of opposition in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 2014 to 2019. The founder and president of YSRCP is famous for launching the 3,000-km-long walkathon named Praja Sankalpa Yatra in 2017.
The YSR Congress Party led by Mr. Jaganmohan Reddy stormed to power by winning 151 of the 175 assembly seats and 22 of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in Andhra Pradesh in 2019. He defeated veteran TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu to signal the start of a new political era in the state.
12) T. Subbarami Reddy
Political Affiliation: Indian National Congress
State: Andhra Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹422 Crores (source)
T. Subbarami Reddy is an industrialist, film producer and a philanthropist. In 1993, he produced the Sanskrit film Bhagavad Gita, which received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film at the 40th National Film Awards. The 77-year-old politician was elected to the 11th and 12th Lok Sabha from the Visakhapatnam constituency. He also served as Rajya Sabha MP in 2002, 2008, and 2014.
13) Nathwani Parimal
Political Affiliation: YSR Congress Party
State: Andhra Pradesh
Net Worth: ₹396 Crores (source)
Group President of corporate affairs at Reliance Industries Ltd, 64-year-old Parimal was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Andhra Pradesh in 2020 for the third time. Earlier, he was elected twice from Jharkhand as an independent candidate.
Nathwani Parimal is known for helping Dhirubhai Ambani in acquiring land and setting up the biggest grassroots crude oil refinery on the western coast near Jamnagar in Gujarat.
He has served as the vice president of the Gujarat Cricket Association (which is rebuilding the Motera stadium at Ahmedabad) since 2010. He has been a mentor to cricketers like Parthiv Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, and Ravindra Jadeja.
