39 per cent candidates in 6th phase of LS polls are crorepatis, average assets Rs 6.21 crore: ADR

By Editor in Chief On May 21, 2024

By Tajdar H. Zaidi
Lucknow: About 39 per cent of candidates contesting in the sixth phase of the Lok Sabha polls are crorepatis with average assets of Rs 6.21 crore, according to poll rights body ADR.
Among the candidates contesting in the sixth phase on May 25, the highest assets have been declared by BJP candidates from Kurukshetra Naveen Jindal at Rs 1,241 crore followed by Santrupt Misra at Rs 482 crore and Sushil Gupta at Rs 169 crore, the analysis by Association of Democratic Reforms said.
Out of the 866 candidates contesting the Lok Sabha polls, 338 (39 per cent) are crorepatis and the average assets per candidate contesting in the Lok Sabha phase VI election is Rs 6.21 crore.
Among the major parties, all six candidates from BJD, four out of four candidates each from RJD and JD(U), 48 (94 per cent) out of 51 candidates from BJP, 11 (92 per cent) out of 12 candidates from SP, 20 (80 per cent) out of 25 candidates from Congress, 4 (80 per cent) out of 5 candidates from AAP and 7 (78 per cent) candidates out of 9 candidates from AITC have declared assets worth more than Rs 1 crore.
Among lowest asset declaration is Master Randhir Singh, an independent candidate from Rohtak, who declared Rs 2 worth of assets followed by Ram Kumar Yadav, a candidate from SUCI(C) in Pratapgarh, who declared assets worth Rs 1,686.
About 411 (47 per cent) candidates have declared liabilities in their affidavits.
About 180 (21 per cent) out of 866 candidates have declared criminal cases against them and 141 (16 per cent) out of 866 have declared serious criminal cases against themselves.
As many as 12 candidates have declared cases where they have been convicted and six candidates have declared cases related to murder (IPC Section -302) against themselves.
The ADR said 21 candidates have declared cases related to attempt to murder (IPC Section 307) against themselves and 24 candidates have declared cases related to crime against women.
Out of 24 candidates 3 candidates have declared charges related to rape (IPC Section-376) and Whoever commits rape repeatedly on the same woman, shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than ten years, but may extend to imprisonment (IPC Section-376(2)(n). The report said 16 candidates have declared cases related to hate speech against themselves.