Indian state minister 'claims £350,000 in expenses on hospitality' - equal to 10,000 cups of tea a day

Money reportedly used for hot drinks, snacks and breakfast at a number of meetings

Chief Minister of the western Indian state of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis (Getty Images )

The chief minister of a west Indian state claimed more than £350,000 in expenses on hospitality in the last year, official documents reveal.

Papers obtained under India’s right to information act showed Devendra Fadnavis, chief minister of Maharashtra, spent 33.4m rupees (£366,000) on tea, snacks and breakfast in 2017.

Mr Fadnavis, who is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), claimed the expenses had been accrued due to meetings at various government offices.

The average of cup of tea in India costs approximately 10 pence and it would take more than 10,000 cups of tea a day to reach the £360,000 figure.

"What tea is the chief minister drinking?" Mumbai’s Congress Party chief, Sanjay Nirupam said, according to the Telegraph.

"We have heard of green tea, yellow tea and so on. But Fadnavis seems to be drinking some kind of golden tea.

“I cannot imagine this huge expenditure on tea when farmers are dying in Maharashtra on a daily basis."

The BJP retorted that the increased spending on tea was a measure of Mr Fadnavis’ greater popularity compared to congress ministers in the past, according to NDTV.

BJP leader Ram Kada added: "This amount includes the cost of tea, snacks, bouquets and mementoes for guests who visit the chief minister.”