30% Bihar candidates face criminal charges

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 4

Political parties, including the BJP, may have promised a clean, corruption-free government to voters, but the fact of the matter is, as many as 1,038 (around 30%) of 3,450 candidates contesting in Bihar have criminal cases against them, as per their own admission.

The only silver lining, if it can be called that, is that the number of candidates with criminal record has gone down marginally from last time the state polled. During 2010, of the 3,058 candidates analysed, 986 (32%) had declared criminal cases against themselves, says the Bihar Election Watch and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).

The ADR, which has analysed affidavits for all 3,450 candidates contesting in the Bihar, says that 796 (23%) candidates have declared serious criminal cases, including cases related to murder, attempt to murder, communal disharmony, kidnapping and crimes against women. A total of 62 of 157 BJP candidates, 41 of 101 JD-U candidates, 47 of 101 RJD candidates, 12 of 41 Congress candidates and 212 of 1,150 Independents have criminal cases against them.