The Bharatiya Janata Party spent Rs 1,737.68 crore for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, according to its expenditure report to the Election Commission published on Thursday.

This amount was nearly three times the combined expenditure totalling Rs 584.65 crore spent by the Congress on the parliamentary and four Assembly elections last year, The Indian Express reported.

The BJP’s report also noted that of the total expenditure, Rs 884.45 crore was spent on general party propaganda and Rs 853.23 crore on candidate-related expenses.

The Lok Sabha elections were conducted in the country from April 19 to June 1. The counting of votes took place on June 4.

The BJP won 240 seats, a significant dip from its tally of 303 seats in 2019. As it fell short of the majority mark of 272 seats, it had to depend on its coalition partners in the National Democratic Alliance to form the government.

The Hindutva party submitted its expenditure report on January 22, months after the 90-day deadline issued by the Election Commission for the parliamentary elections.

As per the report, the party spent Rs 611.50 crore on electronic and print media advertisements, social media, phone calls and text messages. It also spent Rs 55.75 crore on publicity materials, including posters, banners, hoardings and flags, to expand its outreach during campaigning.

Additionally, the party spent Rs 19.84 crore on public meetings, processions and rallies.

The travel expenses of star campaigners, including BJP chief JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, amounted to Rs 168.92 crore, according to the report. It added that Rs 2.53 crore was spent on the travel expenditure of other party leaders.

On the other hand, the Congress spent a total of Rs 584.65 crore on the Lok Sabha and the Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim in 2024, The Indian Express reported, citing the party’s expenditure report published by the Election Commission in October.

The BJP spent Rs 1,264.33 crore during the 2019 general election, according to the newspaper.