Lawbreakers to lawmakers? Here're candidates with criminal cases in 2023

Following several Supreme Court (SC) orders, the Election Commission of India (ECI) has, since 2020, made it mandatory for political parties at the central and state election level to upload on their website detailed information with reference to candidates with pending criminal cases, including the nature of the offence, relevant particulars like whether charges have been framed, the court concerned, case number, etc.

Political parties will also have to furnish reasons for such selection and why other individuals without criminal antecedents could not be selected as candidates.

The parties have to offer the reasons for selection, and not just ‘winnability’ in line with the ECI directives.

This information needs to be published in (a) one local vernacular daily and one national newspaper; (b) on official social media platforms of the political party, including Facebook and Twitter.

Non-compliance will be contempt of the orders of the SC, ECI has warned.

This notice is called Format C7. Election watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms has analysed political parties’ lists of candidates in the Assembly elections in 2023. It found 66 per cent of candidates with criminal cases had complied; 34 per cent had failed to do so.

It says: “None of the SC orders has been able to dissuade parties from giving tickets to candidates with criminal background rather than entry to clean, credible, and honest candidates”.

Association for Democratic Reforms