Delhi Elections: 61% Delhi MLAs have criminal cases against them

Hyderabad: Over 43 newly-elected MLAs of the Delhi Assembly have criminal cases against them, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). According to the self-sworn affidavits of all 70 MLAs, as many as 43, nearly 61 per cent, have declared criminal charges against themselves. Of the 43 MLAs, 37 have serious criminal cases relating to rape, attempt to murder, and crimes against women. When compared to 2015 this is a 27 per cent rise in self-declared criminal cases.

According to the ADR report, among the eight BJP MLAs who managed to acquire a seat in the Delhi Assembly four have criminal charges against them. Arvind Kejriwal’s AAP that came to power for a second consecutive time is not far behind. Out of 62 AAP MLAs, 33 have serious criminal charges against them.

Meanwhile, 38 MLAs from AAP and five from BJP have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits. Thirteen MLAs have declared cases related to crimes against women. Out of these 13 MLAs, one has declared cases related to rape. One MLA has declared a case of attempt to murder. Nine have reported convicted cases against themselves.

74 per cent MLAs are crorepatis

According to the ADR report, 52 (74%) of the 70 MLAs are crorepatis. This is an 11 per cent increase from the 2015 election data. The report said that 45 MLAs from AAP and seven from BJP have declared assets worth more than Rs. 1 crore. In 2020 the average assets per MLA in the Delhi Assembly elections is Rs 14.29 crore.

The top three MLAs with the biggest assets are from AAP. Dharampal Lakra who won from Mundka leads with a total asset of Rs 292 crore. He is followed by Pramila Tokas from New Delhi and Raaj Kumar Anand from Central Delhi. There is a 13 per cent increase in average growth in assets of re-elected MLAs from 2015 to 2020