By IANS,
Bhopal : When counting of votes for the Madhya Pradesh assembly election takes place Monday it will also decide the fate of tainted leaders, including those involved in dacoity, thefts, murder and kidnapping.
Public posturing notwithstanding, there was not a single party which did not field candidates with criminal background and facing corruption charges in the Nov 27 polls.
“All the political parties in the state fielded candidates against whom charges of either murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping, robbery, dacoity, cheating or forgery were pending”, said a source in the state election office.
There are at least 190 such candidates whose affidavits before the Election Commission state that they face criminal charges.
While the Congress fielded 52 such candidates, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) nominated 41, which included 12 ministers facing corruption charges before the Lok Ayukta.
Same was the case with Sadhvi Uma Bharti’s Bharatiya Jan Shakti (BJS) party, which contested the polls on the plank of “removing the corrupt BJP government”. As many as 30 candidates fielded by the BJS have criminal cases pending against them.
Similarly, while the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) fielded 29 such candidates, Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party (SP) had 25 candidates with criminal charges. There were 13 others too from smaller parties.
While murder charges are pending against five candidates, five others face kidnapping accusations, according to the data compiled by the state unit of National Campaign for Electoral Reforms.
Eight candidates face attempt to murder charge while 19 have been booked for cheating and forgery.
The polls also saw 53 candidates who face criminal cases for wrongful restraint and confinement. The SP fielded four candidates who have been allegedly involved in theft.