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Surendra Babu: Rs 108 crore; Capt Gopinath: Rs 66 crore. Also in the fray Santosh Min B: Rs 551
Karnataka has 45 crorepatis among its Lok Sabha candidates this time, and the richest and second richest are from Bangalore.
First-timer R Surendra Babu of the JD(S), with assets worth Rs 108 crore, tops the list, followed by Capt Gopinath, who is worth Rs 66 crore.
National Election Watch, a citizens' group, has compiled a wealth report on the basis of information provided by candidates in their nomination papers. MiD DAY spoke to Surendra Babu, and for contrast, to one of the poorest candidates in the fray, Santosh Min B. Both are contesting from Bangalore.
Surendra Babu (48) is a candidate for Deve Gowda's party from Bangalore North, and likes to describe himself as an advocate.
"My forefathers were land owners around Bangalore North. I own a lot of land around Kaggadaspura and C V Raman Nagar," he told MiD DAY.
'No vote buying'
Surendra Babu says he won't use his money to buy votes.
"Money and liquor can flow in rural areas, but it does not work in my constituency. Bangalore North has educated voters who won't be fooled," he declared.
Family cars
Surendra Babu claims he leads a quiet life, and does not really live it up.
He doesn't own a car, but uses the family-owned Opel Astra and Santro. Other things he told us: He doesn't wear branded clothes but prefers a white shirt and a simple pair of trousers. He doesn't frequent restaurants or holiday abroad. As an advocate, Surendra Babu has taken up public interest cases, and fought them for free.
"For instance, I fought against the demolition of a temple on Old Madras Road and saved it. I also fought against the Metro on CMH Road," he said.
Low reserves
Candidates who have declared zero assets or very little money are independents.
One among them is Santosh Min B (33), who has declared wealth of just Rs 511.
He is contesting from Bangalore South, where Karnataka's second crorepati, Capt Gopinath, is also contesting.
"I had only Rs 511 in my account when I filed my nomination papers on March 31. It was the end of the month," he said.
Almirah symbol
Santosh works as a claims analyst at Aviva Global Services.
Ironically, his symbol is an almirah, a chest people use to keep money.
"My friends say the almirah indicates that I should make money," he said, laughing.
Santosh told the returning officer he did not want the symbol since it did not match its ideals.
"It does not reflect what I stand for," he said. "But the officer convinced me I needed a symbol." Santosh is not campaigning, and does not want to.
"I was among those demanding that a 'None of the above' button be included in electronic voting machines. But the demand was not met," he said.
Last choice
He wants voters to choose him if they don't like the other candidates.
"Luckily, my name will be the last on the ballot sheet. If people don't want the names above, they should treat mine as 'None of the above'," he joked.
Santosh has been associated with Hasiru Usiru, a citizen's forum for environmental issues, and has participated in action to prevent cutting of avenue trees. | 
