New Delhi: The BJP has the highest number of MPs and MLAs facing cases of crime against women, a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and National Election Watch said.
Both election watchdogs analyzed 4,845 of 4,896 election affidavits of current MPs and MLAs. This includes 768 out of 776 affidavits of MPs and 4,077 out of 4,120 MLA affidavits.
Out of 1,580 (33%) MPs and MLAs who have declared criminal cases, 48 have declared cases related to crimes against women. While BJP tops this notorious list among recognised political parties, the others in the fray are Shiv Sena and All India Trinamool Congress.
The BJP has 12 MPs and MLAs who have declared cases of crime against women, while Shiv Sena has 7 and the Trinamool Congress six.
The report adds that among the major parties in the last five years, 47 candidates with cases of crimes against women were given tickets by the BJP. The BSP had given tickets to around 35 such candidates, followed by the Congress (24).
Maharashtra has 12 such MPs and MLAs, followed by West Bengal (11), Odisha and Andhra Pradesh (five each).
Most of the charges that the report speaks of are assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty (IPC Section-354); kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her marriage, etc. (IPC Section-366); rape (IPC Section-376); husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty (IPC Section-498A); buying minor for purposes of prostitution, etc. (IPC Section-373); and word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman (IPC Section-509).
The ADR has now recommended that candidates with serious criminal background be debarred from contesting elections and that political parties disclose the criteria on which candidates are given tickets.
The report comes days after the BJP’s Unnao MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar was booked on charges of raping a minor girl, whose father died in police custody later.
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