Voting across 142 seats is currently underway in the second and final phase of 2026 Assembly elections in West Bengal.
As many as 209 candidates (72 per cent) from the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) have declared assets worth more than ₹1 crore in the 2026 Assembly elections in West Bengal, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
Out of the 2,920 candidates analysed, 629 (22 per cent) are crorepatis, up from 18 per cent during the 2021 Assembly polls in the state.
Among the major political parties, 209 (72 per cent) out of 290 candidates analysed from TMC, 143 (49 per cent) out of 293 candidates from BJP, 86 (29 per cent) out of 293 candidates from Congress, 57 (29 per cent) out of 198 candidates from CPI-M, 4 (17 per cent) out of 23 candidates from All India Forward Bloc as well as 4 (24 per cent) out of 17 candidates from CPI have declared assets worth more than ₹1 crore.
The average of assets per candidate this time is ₹1.27 crore, compared to ₹91.69 lakh during the 2021 West Bengal Assembly polls.
Who is the richest candidate in West Bengal Assembly election 2026?
Jakir Hossain, pitted by TMC from Jangipur seat in Murshidabad, is the richest among all the candidates. As per his election affidavit, Hossain has declared total assets worth over ₹133 crore. He is followed by Goutam Mishra (over ₹105 crore), who is contesting on a TMC ticket from Barjora seat in Bankura.
The average assets for 293 candidates of the BJP analysed is ₹2.91 crore. It stands at ₹1.56 crore for Congress, while 290 TMC candidates have average assets of ₹5.39 crore.
Meanwhile, four candidates have declared zero assets, including independent candidate Mousumi Ghosh (Behala Paschim), Welfare Party of India’s Sahajadi Parvin (Uluberia Purba), Aam Janata Unnayan party’s Asif Hussain (Howrah Madhya) and Sk Habib (Uluberia Dakshin).
The ADR analyses candidate affidavits to highlight trends in Indian elections on a regular basis. The Election Commission requires candidates to declare criminal records, assets, and educational qualifications in an affidavit.
129 ‘red alert’ constituencies
In the 2026 Assembly elections in West Bengal, there are 129 ‘red alert’ constituencies, which are seats having three or more contesting candidates declaring criminal cases. This indicates a 17 per cent rise from the 2021 state elections, as per the ADR report.
A little less than a quarter of candidates in fray – 683 (23 per cent) – have declared criminal cases against themselves. Among them, 589 (or 20 per cent) have declared serious criminal cases.
The ADR report highlights that the BJP has the most candidates – 208 (71 percent) out of 293 candidates analysed – who have declared criminal cases against themselves. On the other hand, Congress has 76 candidates (26 per cent) out of 293 and Trinamool Congress 112 (39 per cent) out of 290 who have declared criminal cases against themselves.
In the second phase of polling, 142 constituencies are in the fray. These are spread across eight key districts — Kolkata North (7 seats), Kolkata South (4), North 24 Parganas (33), South 24 Parganas (31), Howrah (16), Nadia (17), Hooghly (18), and Purba Bardhaman (16).
The counting of votes will take place on May 4.