- By Vivek Raj
- Mon, 29 Apr 2024 03:55 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
The 2024 Lok Sabha elections have progressed through the first two phases, with the initial phase covering 102 constituencies on April 19, followed by the second phase encompassing 89 constituencies on April 26. As the nation awaits the next phase of polling, scheduled for May 7, voters across 12 states and Union Territories are gearing up to exercise their voting rights in 94 Lok Sabha seats.
A recent report by the National Election Watch and the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has shed light on the prevalence of criminal cases among candidates contesting in Phase 3 of the Lok Sabha elections. Out of 1,352 candidates, 244 individuals, constituting 18% of the total, have criminal cases listed against them.
According to the ADR report, 172 candidates, or 13%, have declared serious criminal charges against them. The data reveals that five candidates are facing charges related to murder, while 38 have cases related to crimes against women, including rape. Additionally, 17 candidates have declared cases related to hate speech against them.
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The report also highlights the distribution of candidates with criminal cases across political parties. Notably, 22 out of 82 Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates and 26 out of 68 Congress candidates have criminal cases filed against them. For the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), 3 out of 3 (100%) candidates have cases against them. Likewise, for the Shivsena (UBT), the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction), Samajwadi Party (SP), Janata Dal (United), and All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), the percentages are 80, 67, 50, 33 and 17, respectively.
As per the ADR report, Red alerts have been declared in 45% of constituencies, indicating a prevalence of criminal cases among contesting candidates. Such alerts are issued when three or more candidates in a constituency have declared criminal cases against themselves.
In terms of financial status, the report highlights that 392 out of the 1,352 candidates, i.e. 29% of the candidates are crorepatis, possessing assets worth Rs 1 crore or more. The BJP and Congress have a significant number of crorepati candidates, with 94% and 88% respectively in Phase 3. Meanwhile, all the candidates nominated by the JD(U), Shivsena (UBT), NCP, RJD, Shiv Sena, and NCP (Sharad Pawar faction) are crorepatis.
Leading in asset declarations are BJP's Pallavi Shrinivas Dempo from Goa with assets worth more than Rs 1361 crores, followed by BJP's Jyotiraditya M. Scindia from Madhya Pradesh with assets exceeding Rs 424 crore, and Congress' Chhatrapati Shahu Shahaji from Maharashtra with assets surpassing Rs 342 crore. Five candidates have reported zero assets.
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The report also delves into the educational qualifications of candidates, revealing that 44% are graduates or above, while 47% have studied till Class 6-12.
In terms of gender-wise candidate representation, only 9% of the candidates contesting in the phase 3 Lok Sabha polls are women.