Over 56% of the elected legislators in Telangana are booked in various police cases, observed an election results analysis by Forum for Good Governance here on Wednesday.
Of 119 legislators elected, 67 (56.3%) have cases pending against them, the analysis pointed out. Of those, 44 legislators are from Telangana Rashtra Samithi, 16 from Mahakutami or Congress, Telugu Desam, Telangana Jana Shakti and Communist Party of India.
Six legislators of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen also have cases against them. Bharatiya Janata Party’s only legislator in the house also has cases filed against him.
Forum for Good Governance noted that Supreme Court, in its order dated September 25, 2018, had stated, “The candidate as well as the concerned political party shall issue a declaration in the widely circulated newspapers in the locality about the antecedents of the candidates and also give wide publicity in the electronic media and shall be done thrice after filing nomination papers. These directions ought to be implemented in true spirit and right earnestness in a bid to strengthen the democratic set up”.
“Very few contesting candidates obeyed orders of the Supreme Court,” a statement issued by M. Padmanabha Reddy, secretary of the forum claimed.