No Crime Slur On BJD MP Candidates In Fray For 4th-Phase Polls

Bhubaneswar: No candidates of the ruling BJD, contesting from six Lok Sabha seats, in the fourth-phase elections in Odisha have criminal cases against them, said a joint study by the Odisha Election Watch and the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) on Friday.

According to study, which is corroborated on the self-sworn affidavits of the candidates, of 52 Lok Sabha candidates in the fray, seven (13%) have been booked for criminal cases and six (12%) for serious offences.

Of the 334 MLA candidates, 124 (37.12%) have criminal cases against them. Among these, 72 (22%) have criminal cases and 52 (16%) serious criminal cases. Three have cases related to murder (Section 302 of IPC), 11 booked for attempt to murder (Section 307 of IPC) and eight for crime against women (Section-498A of IPC) and assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty (Section-354 of IPC).

The study on the party-wise candidates with criminal cases has revealed that among the major parties, 24 (60%) of 40 candidates from BJP, 12 (31%) out of 39 candidates from the Congress, 15 (39%) of 39 candidates from BJD, and 1 (3%) of 31 candidates from BSP have declared criminal cases pending against them, while 16 (40%) of 40 candidates from BJP, 10 (26%) of 39 candidates from the Congress, 10 (26%) of 39 candidates from BJD, and 1 (3%) of 31 candidates from BSP have serious criminal cases.