Telangana, Andhra list of rich politicians grows, and grows

Naveen S Garewal
Tribune News Service
Hyderabad, March 26

Politicians in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh top the list of wealthiest leaders in the country. If the two states are compared, Andhra politicians are several times richer than that of the neighbouring Telugu state.

Though Telangana’s Konda Vishweshwar Reddy is so far the richest among them with family assets worth Rs 895 crore, majority on top of the list are from Andhra Pradesh.

Konda Vishweshwar quit the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to join the Congress, which has fielded him from Chevella constituency. Owner of Apollo Hospitals, he has movable assets worth Rs 223 crore, his wife K Sangita Reddy, joint managing director of Apollo Hospitals, has movable assets worth Rs 612 crore and their son, a dependent, Rs 19 crore. Besides, the trio has immoveable assets.

From Andhra Pradesh, Cabinet Minister P Narayana, owner of the Narayana Group of Institutions, has declared family assets worth Rs 667 crore. He is contesting from the Nellore Assembly constituency that will go to the polls on April 11 along with the 25 Andhra parliamentary seats.

Andhra Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has declared family assets worth Rs 574 crore. His son, who is independent of his father in terms of filing income tax and maintaining assets, has declared Rs 320 crore as his net worth. This includes properties in the name of his children and spouse Brahmni, who has declared an annual income of Rs 18 crore. YSR Congress chief YS Jaganmohan Reddy’s assets combined with that of his wife and daughters are valued at over Rs 510 crore against Rs 311 crore he had declared in 2011. 

Jagan has filed his nomination from Pulivendula Assembly constituency of Andhra Pradesh. Believed to be one of the richest politicians, Nama Nageshwar Rao — former politbureau member of the Telugu Desam Party who switched loyalties to the TRS last week — has surprisingly declared only Rs 113-crore assets. He is the promoter of Madhucon Projects Limited and will be taking on Congress’ Renuka Chaudhary in the Khammam parliamentary segment.

In contrast, with Rs 13-crore assets, Telangana’s AIMIM head Asadudin Owaisi figures among those at the “bottom of the crorepati club”.  Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao’s daughter and Nizamabad MP K Kavitha has assets of only Rs 7.63 crore.