New Delhi, May 28, 2026 : The combined income of 36 recognised regional political parties witnessed a sharp decline of more than 51 per cent during the financial year 2024-25, while 21 parties spent more than their declared earnings, according to a new report released by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The report, published on May 27, analysed the audited financial statements of 36 out of the 67 recognised regional parties whose audit reports for FY 2024-25 were available on the Election Commission of India (ECI) website.
ADR noted that the remaining 31 regional parties failed to upload their audit reports even 207 days after the October 31, 2025, submission deadline, raising concerns over transparency and compliance.
According to the report, the total income declared by the 36 regional parties stood at Rs 1,192.94 crore in FY 2024-25, compared to Rs 2,463.17 crore in FY 2023-24 — a massive decline of Rs 1,270.23 crore or 51.57 per cent.
Despite the steep drop in earnings, the total expenditure declared by these parties reached Rs 1,433.07 crore, exceeding their combined income by Rs 240.12 crore, or nearly 20 per cent.
The ADR report highlighted that the top five regional parties alone accounted for nearly 69 per cent of the total income and more than 77 per cent of the total expenditure among all analysed parties.
Among regional parties, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) reported the highest income at Rs 228.31 crore, accounting for 19.14 per cent of the total income. It was followed by the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) with Rs 219.35 crore and the YSR Congress with Rs 140.39 crore.
On the expenditure front, the YSR Congress emerged as the highest spender with Rs 340.20 crore in total expenditure, followed by the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) at Rs 288.44 crore and AITC at Rs 227.59 crore.
The report further revealed that 21 out of the 36 regional parties spent more than the income they generated during the year.
YSR Congress recorded the highest excess expenditure, spending Rs 199.82 crore more than its declared income — equivalent to 142.33 per cent above its earnings.
Other major parties whose expenditure exceeded income included AITC, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), BJD, Janata Dal (United) and the Samajwadi Party.
At the same time, 15 regional parties reported surplus income after expenditure. The TDP recorded the highest surplus with Rs 166.98 crore remaining unspent, followed by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) with Rs 36.27 crore and AIADMK with Rs 35.86 crore.
Voluntary donations and contributions remained the largest source of funding for regional parties during the financial year.
According to ADR, donations contributed Rs 702.36 crore, accounting for 58.88 per cent of the total income of all analysed parties.
AITC reported the highest donations at Rs 184.08 crore, followed by YSR Congress with Rs 140.05 crore and TDP with Rs 85.20 crore.
Interest income also contributed significantly, accounting for Rs 277.21 crore or 23.24 per cent of the total income.
The report observed that election-related spending and administrative expenses continued to dominate expenditure patterns among regional parties.
Fifteen regional parties spent more than 55 per cent of their total expenditure on election campaigns and related activities.
YSR Congress spent the highest amount on elections at Rs 299.92 crore, followed by BJD with Rs 270.66 crore and BRS with Rs 147.99 crore.
ADR also flagged widespread delays in submission of audit reports. While 15 parties filed their reports within the prescribed deadline, 21 parties delayed submissions by periods ranging from two to 96 days.
The organisation further noted that several major regional parties — including DMK, Shiv Sena, Shiv Sena (UBT), NCP and Jammu and Kashmir National Conference — had not uploaded their FY 2024-25 audit reports on the ECI website at the time the report was prepared.
ADR recommended stricter enforcement of disclosure norms, enhanced transparency in donor information and stronger penalties against political parties failing to submit audit reports within stipulated timelines.
