In the newly-elected 90-member Haryana Assembly, 96 percent of MLAs (86) are crorepatis, while 13 percent (12) have criminal cases against them, according to an analysis by poll rights body ADR.
An analysis of the affidavits of all the 90 winning candidates by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Haryana Election Watch shows a slight rise in the number of crorepati MLAs, from 93 percent in 2019 to 96 percent this time.
Of the 90 MLAs, 44 percent possess assets worth over Rs 10 crore, while only 2.2 percent have assets below Rs 20 lakh, the data showed.
Party-wise, 96 percent of BJP legislators, 95 percent of Congress MLAs, and 100 percent of both INLD and Independent winners have declared assets exceeding Rs 1 crore.
Independent MLA from Hisar Savitri Jindal tops the list with assets totaling over Rs 270 crore, followed by BJP’s Shakti Rani Sharma and Shruti Choudhry at Rs 145 crore and Rs 134 crore, respectively.
A total of 30 MLAs have been re-elected in 2024, whose average assets grew by 59 percent since 2019, from Rs 9.08 crore to Rs 14.46 crore now, marking significant financial gains over the past five years.
Meanwhile, of the winning candidates, 12 have disclosed criminal records, including six facing serious charges with one accused of an attempt to murder, the data showed.
In 2019, seven candidates had serious criminal cases against them.
Party-wise, 19 percent of Congress MLAs, 6 percent of BJP legislators, and 67 percent of the Independent winners have declared criminal cases against their names.
The analysis also showed that 28 winning candidates have declared liabilities of Rs 1 crore or more, with Congress’ Rajbir Fartia from Loharu topping the chart at Rs 44 crore.
Fartia also tops the list of highest income earners, declaring an earning of Rs 10.75 crore in his Income Tax Return for 2023-24.
In terms of educational qualification, 68 percent of winning candidates are graduates or hold higher degrees, while 29 percent have educational backgrounds ranging from Class 8 to Class 12, as per the report.
The new House has 14 percent women legislators, an increase from 10 percent in 2019, while 66 percent of the MLAs are aged between 51 and 80 years.
