Just how much are Maharashtra parties spending on digital ads?

The Maharashtra government’s plan to spend Rs 90 crore on digital advertising has attracted strong criticism from opposition parties. But just how much are political parties and government agencies spending on online ads ahead of the state polls?
To find out, India Today analysed online ads placed on Google and Meta platforms by rival political alliances Mahayuti (BJP, Shiv Sena, and Nationalist Congress Party) and Maha Vikas Aghadi (Congress, NCP-Sharad Pawar faction, and Shiv Sena-UBT), as well as by government departments over the past month.
Data sourced from Meta’s Ad Library report and Google Ads Transparency Centre reveals that more than Rs 8.5 crores was spent in Maharashtra on “political advertisements”, as categorised by the platforms, between September 9 and October 8.
For this analysis, only ad spends exceeding Rs 1 lakh were considered.
The Mahayuti alliance spent Rs 2.49 crore during this period, over ten times the amount spent by Maha Vikas Aghadi constituents, who spent just Rs 24.59 lakh.

Former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray’s faction of Shiv Sena did not spend any money on digital ads during this time. Spending by Sharad Pawar’s group of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) was also modest, not even reaching Rs 18 lakh.
Of Mahayuti’s Rs 2.49 crore, the BJP and its supporters spent Rs 2.18 crore – more than 87 per cent – on public outreach via websites, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
Among political parties, Sharad Pawar’s NCP was the second-largest digital advertiser, spending nearly Rs 18 lakh, followed by Shiv Sena with Rs 16.5 lakh, and the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, which spent Rs 13.63 lakh over the past 30 days.

The Congress party spent just over Rs 6.5 lakh in Maharashtra, the data shows. The biggest advertisers, however, were state government agencies, which placed online ads costing over Rs 2.74 crore during this period.

Leading government advertisers include the Department of Women and Child Development, Maharashtra’s official PR agency, the Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Protection Department, the Other Backward Bahujan Welfare Department, the Jal Jeevan Mission, the Maharashtra Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board, and the Housing Department.
Additionally, political leaders placed online ads worth Rs 25 lakh in a personal capacity.
Earlier this week, the Maharashtra government floated a tender for a Rs 90-crore advertising campaign on digital platforms, scheduled to run for just five days.
The move drew sharp criticism from Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) leaders, who labelled it “loot” and argued that the funds could have been better spent on public welfare.
“Just for digital publicity, the Mahajhoothi Government has issued a 5-day tender worth Rs 90 crore – that’s Rs 18 crore per day, Rs 75 lakh per hour, and Rs 1.5 lakh per minute! The loot is on. This is exactly how Maharashtra taxpayers’ money is flowing like water for the political benefit of this illegal government,” retorted Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi.