67 newly-elected MLAs in Odisha facing criminal cases: ADR report

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BHUBANESWAR: A report prepared by Odisha Election Watch (OEW) and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) said that about 46 per cent or 67 of the newly elected MLAs in Odisha face criminal cases.

The ADR report also showed that 49 newly-elected MLAs are facing serious criminal charges such as murder, attempt to murder and kidnapping. Murder cases are pending against two MLAs and 11 legislators of the 16th Odisha Assembly are facing cases of attempt to murder.

In terms of parties having MLAs with criminal background, BJD is on top of the list as 46 out of 112 newly-elected MLAs of the party have criminal cases pending against them. At least 14 (61 per cent) of the 23 MLAs from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 6 (67 per cent) of the 9 MLAs from Congress have declared criminal cases against them. According to ADR report, 33 (30 per cent) MLAs from the BJD, 10 (44 per cent) from the BJP and five from the Congress face serious criminal cases.

In 2014, of the 147 MLAs elected, 52 had declared criminal cases while 41 (28 per cent) had serious criminal cases against them.