The affidavits by DAKSH in association with B.PAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) showed that 38 out of 115 (33 per cent) candidates contesting in Bengaluru are facing criminal cases. While some of these cases are at the stage of investigation, most are before the courts.
Some of the cases registered against the candidates include attempts to murder, cheating, corruption, money laundering, and rioting among others. A total of 10 candidates have cheating cases registered against them, seven candidates have been booked for rioting, two candidates are facing money laundering cases, and three candidates have been booked for murder, culpable homicide, and death by negligence.
According to the report, the BJP has the highest number of candidates with criminal cases (11) followed by the Congress (10), AAP (9), and JDS (5). Of these 38 candidates, three candidates have a postgraduate degree, and 21 candidates have a graduate degree. Of the remaining, two candidates have only studied up to Class XII, eight have completed SSLC, and three have not completed SSLC. Only one candidate has a diploma.
BJP’s Rajarajeswari Nagar candidate and Horticulture Minister Munirathna Naidu has four cases registered against him including promoting enmity between different groups, bribery, electoral offences, and defamation, among others.
C. Govindaraj, the JD (S) candidate contesting from Chamarajpete, has 17 cases registered against him including criminal breach of trust, forgery, land dispute, cheating, and money laundering. B. Z. Zameer Ahmed Khan, the Congress MLA from Chamarajpete has cases like causing death by negligence, motor vehicle offences, corruption, and money laundering, among others.
The BJP candidate from Shivajinagara N. Chandra is the only candidate from Bengaluru to have an attempt to murder charge against him apart from other offences like criminal intimidation, rioting, and assault. Other leaders who have cases registered against them are Congress MLA from BTM Layout Ramalinga Reddy, Congress MLA Jayanagara Sowmya Reddy, Revenue Minister and BJP MLA of Padmanabhanagar R. Ashoka, BJP Malleshwaram MLA and Minister of Higher Education & IT/BT Dr. C. N. Ashwath Narayana and BJP Yeshwanthpura MLA and Minister of Cooperation S. T. Somashekar among others.
