Centre spent ₹2,586 cr on ads promoting PM Modi between 2020-26: RTI
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A Right to Information (RTI) response has revealed that the Union government spent around ₹2,586 crore on advertisements featuring or promoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi between 2020 and 2026.
The information was obtained through an RTI application filed by Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale, who sought details of government expenditure on advertisements across platforms such as digital media, social media, television, radio, print publications and outdoor displays, Siasat Daily reported.
The data was provided by the Central Bureau of Communication on June 16, with expenditure details listed financial year-wise from 2020 onwards. However, the names of agencies that received the payments were not disclosed, according to Gokhale.
The RTI data showed that print advertisements accounted for nearly ₹796 crore during the period. Gokhale highlighted that print advertising expenditure alone reached almost ₹338 crore in 2025–26, which was significantly higher than the previous year’s spending of ₹83.16 crore.
Spending on television and radio advertisements was estimated at around ₹936 crore between 2020–21 and the current financial year, while outdoor advertising, including hoardings, accounted for nearly ₹583.97 crore.
The data also indicated a sharp increase in outdoor advertising expenditure around the period before and after the 2024 general elections. Spending rose from ₹32.76 crore in 2022–23 to ₹162.21 crore in 2023–24.
According to the RTI details, advertising expenditure had already reached ₹2.76 crore in the first six months of the 2026–27 financial year. Gokhale criticised the scale of spending, saying the figures represented a significant use of public funds.
