Crime and politics go hand in hand in Gujarat, study finds
One in six candidates in the Gujarat election is facing criminal charges, according to a report released by an Indian watchdog group, The Association for Democratic Reforms.
Murder, rape, arson, extortion, embezzlement, rioting and financial fraud are some of the charges that have been filed against 138 of the 1,000 candidates in the fray. Of the 138, the Congress is fielding 29, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) 34 and the rest are independents.
The figures reveal the failure of political parties to deny tickets to candidates with criminal antecedents. Some sections of society are appalled at the growing presence of criminals in Indian politics, but efforts to arrest the trend are failing.
Asked about the BJP's candidates, party spokesman Arun Jaitley said: 'We try and balance between the facts of the case and winnability. With some people the charges haven't been established, which raises questions about their veracity.'
Mr Jaitley was propounding the same argument that India's political parties used this year to abort a bill aimed at preventing criminals being electoral candidates. The bill, supported by the Election Commission, proposed disqualifying anyone facing criminal charges.
In an unprecedented display of unity all the parties came together to defeat it. The reason they gave was that false charges could easily be filed against people and it would be unfair to deprive them of a ticket until the charges had been proven. So the reform was watered down to disqualify only those who had already been convicted and sentenced to two years in jail.
Judging by the Gujarat figures, the criminalisation of Indian politics is growing apace. As it is, the commission says at least 40 MPs in the national parliament and 700 state legislators face criminal charges over offences such as murder, rape, theft and extortion.
But parties keep giving tickets to such people because all they care about is winning. Moreover, criminals usually have access to the money that parties need to fight and win elections.
For Muslims in Gujarat, the most painful cases are those of men who participated in the violence that broke out in February and left 2,000 people dead, mainly Muslims.
The same men are now out on the streets, soliciting votes and respectability.
Analysts are unsure how many Muslim voters will turn out to vote on polling day on December 12, but teenager Idris Sheikh will be voting.
'Thirteen members of my family were killed. The mob burnt alive 35 people in our locality. Their shrieks still keep me awake at night. And the mobs had the backing of the BJP. That's why I'll come out to vote against it.'
Voluntary worker Farah Naqvi believes Muslims will come out in large numbers: 'All their rights have been stripped away, their livelihoods are gone and their lives are torn apart. They are now clinging to their right to vote as the last chance to be counted as citizens of this country.'
