With declared assets worth over ₹583 crore, the AIADMK candidate for the Erode Parliamentary constituency, Ashok Kumar, is one of the richest politicians contesting in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu.
In his affidavit filed with the Returning Officer on Monday, March 25, 2024, Mr. Ashok Kumar declared his movable assets to be worth ₹526.53 crore while movable assets of his spouse, Karunambika, were declared to be worth ₹47.38 crore. He also declared his immovable assets as worth ₹56.95 crore and those of his spouse’s as worth ₹22.60 crore. His cash in hand stood at ₹10 lakh while his wife’s cash in hand was declared as ₹5 lakh. He also declared ₹12 lakh as a liability, as he had obtained a house loan from a private bank.
Most of his movable assets were in the form of fixed deposits and savings in both nationalised and private banks, investments in debentures, shares and mutual funds. The couple has no vehicle in their name. While Mr. Ashok Kumar possesses 10,100 grams of gold worth ₹5 crore, his wife possesses 10,600 grams of gold worth ₹5.50 crore. Most of their assets were located in Coimbatore, with others being in Dindigul, Erode, Dharapuram, Kumarapalayam, Kangeyam and at Solangapalayam in Erode.
Mr. Ashok Kumar’s source of income is from businesses and from a salary while his wife, an architect, receives rental income and a salary. He had filed Income Tax returns of ₹1.09 crore for 2022-23, while his wife filed her return for ₹1.03 crore.
Extensive social service
The 54-year-old, a native of Pudupalayam village in Kodumudi taluk, is known for his extensive social services, including the renovation of government schools, temples and community centres. His service to the poor through meals for ₹10 and ₹10 for doctors’ consultations had benefitted many lakhs of people, through his Aatral Foundation, set up in 2021.
Mr. Ashok Kumar’s mother K.S. Soundaram is a former MP (Tiruchengodu constituency, 1991) while his mother-in-law C. Saraswati is a sitting MLA (Modakkurichi).
Mr. Ashok Kumar completed an engineering degree in Coimbatore, followed by an M.S. and M.B.A. in the United States, and worked in multi-national companies from 1992 to 2005. He was earlier with the BJP and served as its State OBC wing vice-president for two years before he joined the AIADMK in November 2023.
