Candidate with most number of criminal cases wins in Gujarat elections

HT, Dec 18, 2017, New Delhi: Maheshbhai Chotubhai Vasava, the candidate with most number of criminal cases registered against him in Gujarat elections, won the Dediapada seat by over 83,026 votes on Monday.

Vasava, president of the Bharatiya Tribal Party, is named in 24 criminal cases, including two of murder and one of attempt to murder. He is president of the newly formed Bharatiya Tribal Party, which allied with the Congress in the Gujarat elections and won two seats. Vasava and his father, tribal leader Chhotubhai, were found guilty of beating up a Congress leader in 2009 and sentenced them to three-year imprisonment, says this report.

Congress candidate Kiritkumar Patel, who has 12 criminal cases aginst him, won from the Patan constituency, reported The Hindu. Nationalist Congress Party candidate Kadhalbhai Jadeja, who has 11 criminal cases filed against him, won in Kutiyana. BJP leader Shailesh Mehta, who is named in 11 criminal cases, won in Dabhoi.

An analysis of the affidavits of candidates in fray for both phases of the Gujarat assembly elections had revealed that 38 Congress candidates faced serious criminal charges. There was a 10% rise in candidates with serious criminal charges when compared to the party’s candidates for the 2012 assembly polls.

The Congress’s percentage went from 12% to 22%, said the analysis conducted by two NGOs - Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Gujarat Election Watch(GEW).

In 2012, 21 Congress candidates out of 171, that is 12%, were facing such serious charges. This time, as many as 38 candidates out of 174 candidates, that is 22%, are facing such charges, the analysis showed. The BJP’s percentage, at 13%, has remained the same, said the NGOs.