Lok Sabha elections 2024: '5 of 6 candidates from Bengaluru constituencies have criminal cases'

Five of the six candidates contesting the Lok Sabha elections from the three Bengaluru constituencies have criminal cases against them, revealed an analysis by citizen’s group Bangalore Political Action Committee (B.PAC) and civil society organisation DAKSH on Thursday.

These cases, some of which are either pending before the courts or are still being investigated, are declared by the candidates in their affidavits. Except for Bangalore North Congress candidate M V
Rajeev Gowda, other candidates from the two national parties have between one to six cases filed against them for various offences.

Bangalore South Congress candidate Sowmya Reddy has the highest number of cases at six. Cases have been filed against her for wrongful restraint, criminal intimidation, unlawful assembly, public nuisance, and voluntarily causing hurt, assault, or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharging his duties, under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). She also has a case registered under section 127A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and section 3 of the Karnataka Open Places (Prevention of Disfigurement) Act, 1981.

Bangalore Central candidates P C Mohan and Mansoor Ali Khan have charges of unlawful assembly, disobedience to a public servant’s order, and public nuisance, while the latter also has a pending traffic violation under the Hyderabad City Police Act.

BJP North candidate Shobha Karandlaje has five cases in total under charges of defamation, inflammatory speech and scandalous allegations against a state, and provocations with intent to cause riot. Additionally, she also has charges of money laundering against her, a cognizable offence registered under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.

Tejasvi Surya, BJP candidate for the South, has three cases, including charges of promoting enmity between different groups and deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings, besides unlawful assembly, rioting, and voluntarily causing hurt to a public servant.

Sharath S R from B.PAC explained that their team of four focused only on candidates from national parties and waited until all candidates contesting in the city filed their nominations to begin the analysis.

“We first checked for the cases that these candidates declared in their self-sworn affidavits and then cross-checked the cases on the eCourt portal. This analysis was done to inform voters of their candidates so they can make informed choices,” he said.