As many as 200 multimillionaires and 91 persons with declared criminal cases, including charges of murder and rape, are among the 637 candidates in the fray in Uttarakhand.
According to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), of the 91 candidates with criminal cases, 54 face charges like murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping and rape.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with 19 tops the list of candidates with criminal antecedents followed by the Congress with 17.
The Peace Party's Jameel Ahmad Mansoori, contesting from Jaspur, is the lone candidate accused of rape.
With 52 of its candidates possessing assets in excess of Rs 1 crore, the Congress tops the multi-millionaire list followed by the BJP with 48 and Bahujan Samaj Party (19).
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The average assets of the candidates is Rs 1.57 crore.
BJP's Satpal Maharaj (Chaubattakhal) is the richest with assets in excess of Rs 80 crore while the Bahujan Mukti Party's Sunil Kumar (Manglore) has declared assets worth only Rs 500.
On the education front, 340 nominees are graduates or above while 256 have studied in schools. Six are illiterate.
A total of 637 candidates from 34 political parties, including six national parties and four state parties, are in the fray for the 70-member assembly which goes to the polls on February 15.
--IANS
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