In the aftermath of the Madhya Pradesh assembly elections, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) released disturbing data showing that ninety-nine out of the 230 newly elected MLAs, or nearly 39 percent of them, are still facing criminal charges.
The ADR, a non-profit organization disclosing vital candidate information, outlined in its report that 34 MLAs, or around 15%, have serious criminal charges against them among the winners in the state elections.
Among these troubling figures are 51 MLAs from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), 38 from the Congress Party, and one from the Bharatiya Adivasi Party.
While there has been a slight decrease from the 2018 elections, when 94 out of 230 MLAs faced criminal charges, the number of crorepati MLAs has increased. 89% of the newly elected members are ‘crorepatis,’ with 144 BJP members and 61 Congress members. In comparison, 187 crorepati MLAs were elected in the previous assembly elections in 2018.
The report also spotlights educational qualifications, noting that 161 winning candidates are graduates or higher. Additionally, there are 64 candidates with educational qualifications ranging from 5 to 12, while three hold diplomas and two are literate.
Significantly, only 12% of the winning candidates are women, totaling 27 out of 230 MLAs. Despite the increase compared to the last assembly polls, where only 21 MLAs were women, the representation remains modest.
In the recently concluded polls, the BJP secured a resounding victory by winning 163 seats, with Congress trailing at 66 seats and the Bharat Adivasi Party securing one seat in Madhya Pradesh. The state went to the polls on November 17 for its 230 assembly seats.