“Hum to fakeer aadmi hain, jhola le ke chal padenge,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi had famously proclaimed in December 2016, defending the government’s drastic decision to demonetise around 86 per cent of Rs 18 lakh crore worth banknotes in circulation. The PM was trying to paint the decision as a decisive strike against corruption and dismissed the criticism he faced over the decision, stating he hardly had anything to lose.

Specifically, the reference was to his modest upbringing and “poor” background that had helped him prop up his ‘chaiwallah’ image ahead of ther 2014 polls. At that time, Modi declared assets worth Rs 1.65 crore in his affidavit ahead of the Lok Sabha elections when he was still the Gujarat Chief Minister.

The past 10 years have seen Modi’s assets grow from Rs 1.65 crore in 2014 to Rs 3.02 crore in 2024, the affidavit filed by the Prime Minister while filing his nomination from Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh shows. In 2019, PM Modi’s assets stood at Rs 2.51 crore.

Narendra Modi assets: No property, zero liabilities

According to the PM’s affidavit, he owns no immovable assets and has no property or vehicle registered in his name. The assets listed in his name include Rs 2.86 crore in bank deposits, all with State Bank of India. National Savings Certificates account for another Rs 9 lakh. He also owns four gold rings worth around Rs 2.7 lakh and has zero allocation to securities, such as shares, mutual funds and bonds.

A residential property with a value of Rs 1.1 crore earlier listed under his movable assets is no longer part of his 2024 affidavit. The PM’s affidavit mentions Rs 52,920 as cash in hand. He has FDs worth Rs 2.86 crore, all with the State Bank of India. There are no loans or dues pending against him.

Prime Minister Modi is contesting from the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat for a third consecutive term in office. He first contested from the seat in the 2014 election and has held the seat as MP since then.

Rahul Gandhi six times richer than Modi

The story of Rahul Gandhi, the former Congress president who is the sitting MP from Kerala’s Wayanad and is also in the fray from Raebareli, a seat vacated by his mother Sonia Gandhi earlier this year, is one of contrast.

Since the Congress’ loss in the 2014 polls, Rahul has led the charge against PM Modi with allegations ranging from irregularities in the Rafale deal to a quid pro quo for his industrialist “friends” under the guise of political donation through electoral bonds that the Supreme Court deemed illegal earlier this year.

All through, Rahul has attempted to project himself as a messiah of the poor, even championing the cause of higher reservations following a nationwide caste census that Congress Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were fundamentally opposed to. He has carefully positioned himself as a leader who identifies and understands the problems of India’s poor and downtrodden and promises to alleviate them from their misery.

While Modi and Rahul claim to champion the same cause — albeit through different methods — their assets portfolio stands in stark contrast. As per Rahul’s affidavits filed before filing of nomination for the Wayanad and Raebareli seats, Rahul owns assets worth Rs 20.34 crore, over six times that of what Modi owns.

As per his self-sworn affidavit, Rahul has movable assets worth Rs 9.24 crore while the value of his immovable assets stands at Rs 11.14 crore. Rahul has stock market investments worth Rs 4.3 crore, mutual fund deposits worth Rs 3.81 crore, Rs 26.25 lakh in a bank account and gold bonds of Rs 15.21 lakh. Rahul’s immovable assets include those he has acquired himself valued at Rs 9.04 crore and inherited assets worth Rs 2.10 crore.

The immovable assets include agricultural land in village Sultanpur, Mehrauli, New Delhi measuring around 3.778 acres, which is jointly held by him with his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and commercial apartments (office space) in Signature Towers in Gurugram measuring 5,838 square feet.

Rahul has declared Rs 55,000 as cash in hand while his total income stood at Rs 1.02 crore during FY 2022-23 which he has attributed to sources including salary, royalty, rent, interest from bonds, dividends and capital gain from mutual funds. He also owns jewellery worth Rs 4.2 lakh and has a liability of about Rs 49.7 lakh. He does not own any residential apartment.