As the counting of votes in assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana kickstarted on December 3 in what is seen as a semi-final contest ahead of the general elections in less than six months, data shows that vast majority of the incumbent MLAs in these poll-bound states are crorepatis.
Additionally, significant number of them also have criminal cases against them, an analysis of MLAs’ affidavits by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), highlights.
In Mizoram, 35 of 39 MLAs (nearly 90 percent) are crorepatis, with assets of Rs 4.8 crore on average. Although the state assembly has 40 seats, one seat currently remains vacant as minister of state for social welfare, K Beichua, left the ruling MNF to join the BJP in October this year. He too is a crorepati.
Telangana has the highest share of crorepati MLAs among the five states headed for the polls. As many as 106 of its 118 sitting MLAs are crorepatis. The MLAs have assets worth Rs 13.57 crore on average, making them the richest among the MLAs in these five states.
In Chhattisgarh, 65 of the 88 sitting MLAs, are crorepatis, with average assets worth Rs 10.5 crore. Meanwhile, out of the 230 sitting MLAs in Madhya Pradesh, 186 are crorepatis. The MLAs in the state have average assets worth Rs 10.77 crore.
Furthermore, in Rajasthan, as much as 157 out of the 199 sitting MLAs are crorepatis. On average, each MLA of the state have assets worth Rs 7.49 crore.
Criminal background
Along with being the richest, the Telangana assembly also has the highest share of MLAs with criminal cases among the five states. More than 72 MLAs (61 percent) have criminal cases registered against them. Meanwhile, the state also has the highest proportion of MLAs facing serious criminal cases (39 percent), including attempted murder, crimes against women, etc.
At 40 percent, Madhya Pradesh has the second-highest share of MLAs with criminal cases, and more than 20 percent of its MLAs face serious criminal cases.
On the other hand, Mizoram has the lowest share of MLAs facing criminal cases. Only 2 of its 39 MLAs have criminal cases registered against them, and only one is facing a serious criminal charge.
Age and educational qualifications
In all the five states analysed, those aged 50 and above comprise the majority of the MLAs. Telangana has the oldest Assembly among the five, with around 64 percent of the MLAs aged 50 or more. Rajasthan comes second in the list, with around 60 percent of its sitting MLAs being aged above 50.
On the other hand, Chhattisgarh has the highest share of younger MLAs, with more than 42 percent of them aged below 50. The state also has the most educated assembly — more than 36 percent of its MLAs are post-graduates.
Meanwhile, the Telangana Assembly is the least educated among the five states, as it has the lowest share of graduates. The state also has the highest share of MLAs who’ve studied only up to class 10 (or less).
Gender distribution
Although none of the states are close to achieving gender parity, Chhattisgarh is relatively better when it comes to female representation, with around 18 percent women MLAs. Rajasthan comes second — 13.57 percent of its MLAs are women.
Meanwhile, Mizoram fares the worst when it comes to female representation, with not a single woman MLA.
Moreover, an analysis of the candidates contesting in the Mizoram assembly elections shows that women’s representation has once again been overlooked by political parties in the state. None of the political parties have fielded more than three women candidates, and only 18 (10 percent) of the total 174 candidates are women.
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