There seems to be no place for the poor or middle class gentry in the top echelons of India's politics, which has become the exclusive fiefdom of crorepatis. Rediff.com takes a look at the richest chief ministers of India and their breathtaking assets (financial ones, that is).

M ayawati is the richest chief minister in India, with assets worth an eye-popping Rs 86 crore.

The Bahujan Samaj Party chief has sure come a long way since her humble days as a school teacher and a grassroots Dalit leader.

She owns property worth Rs 75 crore, including a commercial centre in Okhla worth Rs 15.5 crore and plots at Sardar Patel Marg worth over Rs 54 crore, among others.