{"id":80488,"date":"2026-07-31T18:02:26","date_gmt":"2026-07-31T12:32:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=80488"},"modified":"2026-07-31T18:04:46","modified_gmt":"2026-07-31T12:34:46","slug":"criminalisation-politics-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/31-07-2026\/criminalisation-politics-india","title":{"rendered":"Criminalisation of Politics"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/Polity and Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and National Election Watch looks at the<strong> self-sworn election affidavits of all sitting CMs of 28 states and three Union territories.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Major Highlights<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>45% (14) <\/strong>of India\u2019s current Chief Ministers <strong>have criminal cases lodged against them.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-dominant-color=\"e2e1e0\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #e2e1e0;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"484\" height=\"265\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-269.png\" alt=\"CMs and criminal cases\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-80489\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-269.png 484w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-269-300x164.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 484px) 100vw, 484px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"dcd4cd\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"706\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-270-1024x706.png\" alt=\"share of wealth among cms\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-80490\" style=\"--dominant-color: #dcd4cd; width:502px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-270-1024x706.png 1024w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-270-300x207.png 300w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-270-768x529.png 768w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2026\/07\/image-270.png 1152w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Women Representation:<\/strong> Of the 31, only one, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta is a woman.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In total, India has <strong>390 female MLAs (9%) <\/strong>of the total <strong>4123 representatives across state and UT assemblies.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Educational Qualification: <\/strong>Nine (29%) are post-graduates, the largest single group followed by seven graduates (23%) and six graduate professionals (19%).\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Three CMs hold doctorates, while two have studied only up to Class 10.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Reasons of Criminalisation of Politics<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Weak Disqualification Laws:<\/strong> As per the Representation of the <strong>People Act, 1951 (RPA) <\/strong>disqualification of the candidates occurs only after conviction. Since trials take years, candidates contest multiple elections before any judgment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Money and Muscle Power:<\/strong> Candidates with financial resources and local influence are seen as \u201cwinnable\u201d candidates.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Low Voter Awareness: <\/strong>Affidavits disclose candidate details, but many voters remain unaware or vote on caste\/religious lines.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Party Complicity:<\/strong> Parties at times justify the candidature on the basis of popularity and electoral chances.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Judicial Delays:<\/strong> Due to the frequent adjournments and long duration of judicial processes criminals escape conviction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Impact of Criminalisation of Politics<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Erosion of Democratic Values: <\/strong>It undermines the principle of free and fair elections and voters are left with restricted choices, weakening the spirit of representative democracy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Corruption: <\/strong>The presence of criminal elements escalates<strong> electoral malpractices<\/strong> such as voter <strong>intimidation, booth capturing, and the use of black money<\/strong> in campaigns.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Decline of Public Trust: <\/strong>Repeated election of tainted representatives, lead to <strong>declining voter turnout<\/strong> and weakening people\u2019s faith in democratic institutions.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Distortion of Policy-Making:<\/strong> Elected representatives use political power to protect personal and criminal networks and divert policy-making away from public interest<strong>.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Key Committee Recommendations<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Indrajit Gupta Committee (1998) &amp; 2nd ARC (2007)<\/strong> recommended partial state funding of elections to curb the use of black money and reduce corruption.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution<\/strong> in its <strong>2002 <\/strong>report recommended measures to enhance the accountability of political parties, including the statutory audit of party expenses and the disclosure of candidates&#8217; assets and liabilities.\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The Law Commission&#8217;s 244th Report (2014)<\/strong> recommended disqualifying politicians from contesting elections as soon as charges are framed against them for offenses that carry a maximum punishment of<strong> five years or more.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The report specifically recommended <strong>expediting trials for sitting MPs and MLAs<\/strong> by establishing fast-track courts.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Supreme Court Interventions<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>In Lily Thomas v. Union of India (2013), <\/strong>the Court ruled that any sitting MP, MLA, or MLC would be <strong>immediately disqualified <\/strong>upon conviction for a crime with a sentence of <strong>two years or more.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In<strong> Public Interest Foundation v. Union of India (2018),<\/strong> the Court directed political parties to publicize the criminal records of candidates, detailing the nature of offences and charges.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>In 2020, the Supreme Court of India<\/strong> ordered political parties to publish details of candidates with pending criminal cases on their websites, social media, and in newspapers, along with the reasons for their selection, <strong>within 48 hours <\/strong>of candidate selection.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>130th Constitution Amendment Bill<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Background: <\/strong>The bill was introduced in 2025 and was subsequently referred to a <strong>Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) <\/strong>following intense opposition protests.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Major Features: <\/strong>The Bill provides for the removal of a minister if he\/she is accused of an offence <strong>punishable with five or more years of imprisonment,<\/strong> and has been <strong>arrested and detained for 30 consecutive days.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If the <strong>Prime Minister or a Chief Minister remains in custody for 30 consecutive days,<\/strong> they must resign; otherwise, they would automatically cease to hold office on the 31st day.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The removal can be directed by the President or Governor <\/strong>upon the advice of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister, respectively, or automatically on the 31st day of detention.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>At present,<\/strong> ministers leave office through <strong>resignation, dismissal by the Prime Minister or Chief Minister, or disqualification<\/strong> following conviction under existing laws.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The criminal background of the elected representatives <strong>undermines democratic governance, weakens the rule of law, and erodes public trust in institutions.\u00a0<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The issue needs to be addressed with the <strong>electoral reforms, speedy trials of the cases, transparency in political funding and informed voter participation.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/chief-ministersandcriminality-45-ofindiascms-have-casespending-against-them\/article71277707.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>TH<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong> Context <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> A report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and National Election Watch looks at the self-sworn election affidavits of all sitting CMs of 28 states and three Union territories. <\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong> Major Highlights <\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> 45% (14) of India\u2019s current Chief Ministers have criminal cases lodged against them. <\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\"> Women Representation: Of the 31, only one, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta is a woman. <\/li>\n<p><a href=\" https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/31-07-2026\/criminalisation-politics-india \" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80488"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":80493,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80488\/revisions\/80493"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}