Patiala, September 30 (Pradeep Shahi)
Voting for the Haryana Assembly Elections 2024 is scheduled to take place on October 5, with the counting of votes set for October 8. A total of 1,031 candidates are contesting in the elections, and out of these, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has analyzed the background of 1,028 candidates. The analysis reveals that a significant number of these candidates have serious criminal charges against them, yet they continue to receive backing from political parties. Several candidates even face charges like murder and rape. In this special report, we will discuss the nature and extent of criminal allegations against these candidates, including those under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder).
In a landmark directive issued on February 13, 2020, the Supreme Court had asked political parties to explain why they were not fielding candidates with a clean background. Despite this, no party has taken action to comply with these orders, and the number of candidates with criminal charges continues to rise.
According to the affidavits filed by the 1,028 candidates, 133 candidates (13%) have criminal cases registered against them. In comparison, during the 2019 Assembly elections, 117 candidates (10%) out of 1,138 had serious criminal cases against them. This year, the number of candidates with serious criminal charges stands at 95 (9%), whereas it was 70 (6%) in 2019, showing a 3% increase in such cases.
Criminal Cases Declared by Candidates of Political Parties
Let’s look at the major political parties and their candidates with serious criminal charges in the Haryana Assembly Elections 2024:
- Congress: Out of 89 candidates, 11 (12%) have serious criminal cases.
- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): Out of 89 candidates, 3 (3%) have serious criminal cases.
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP): Out of 88 candidates, 14 (16%) have serious criminal cases.
- Jannayak Janta Party (JJP): Out of 66 candidates, 6 (9%) have serious criminal cases.
- Indian National Lok Dal (INLD): Out of 51 candidates, 6 (12%) have serious criminal cases.
- Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP): Out of 35 candidates, 3 (9%) have serious criminal cases.
When considering all types of criminal charges:
- Congress: Out of 89 candidates, 17 (19%) have criminal cases.
- BJP: Out of 89 candidates, 6 (7%) have criminal cases.
- AAP: Out of 88 candidates, 23 (26%) have criminal cases.
- JJP: Out of 66 candidates, 7 (11%) have criminal cases.
- INLD: Out of 51 candidates, 9 (18%) have criminal cases.
- BSP: Out of 35 candidates, 3 (9%) have criminal cases.
Serious Charges and Areas Under Red Alert
In the 2024 Haryana Assembly elections, 11 candidates from different political parties have cases registered against them for crimes against women. Out of these, two candidates are accused under IPC section 376 (rape). Additionally, six candidates are charged under IPC section 302 (murder), and eight candidates face charges under IPC section 307 (attempt to murder).
Twenty constituencies (22%) out of Haryana’s 90 Assembly constituencies have been classified as “Red Alert” constituencies. These are constituencies where three or more candidates have criminal charges against them. In 2019, 15 constituencies (17%) were in this category.
