Rajeev Chandrasekhar's affidavits: The riddle of wealth disclosure

It is not once but twice that Union Minister and Thiruvananthapuram BJP candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s election affidavits have come under the scanner. While the Kerala High Court cited time and dismissed a petition that alleged that Rajeev had not declared all his wealth and income, it has also become a source of jokes with actor Prakash Raj asking how the millionaire minister earns less than him.

Though Rajeev and his family are part of companies that make millions and Rajeev himself has shares worth hundreds of crores, the question is why he has declared just Rs 13.69 crore as his moveable assets in his 2024 election affidavit. The Congress and others have raised many questions. How can Rajeev who has flaunted his cars before cameras declare that he does not own cars? What about the properties he owns through subsidiaries of companies he has a stake in, including a property in London purchased for 11.5 million pounds in 2010? In 2020, Hurun India’s list of rich people pegged him at No 596 with a wealth of Rs 1,400 crore.

TNM looked through Rajeev’s affidavits and what we could understand was that nothing much has changed since 2018, when he submitted an affidavit as part of his Rajya Sabha application. He is using a loophole in the law to not declare his entire wealth and aiding him in doing this is the way his company holdings are structured – like a maze.