In New Modi govt, 51 ministers are crorepatis, 22 face criminal cases: ADR
New Delhi, May 31: Of the 56 ministers who took oath on Thursday and are part of either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha, 51 are crorepatis and 22 have declared criminal cases against themselves, according to election watchdog Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
It said eight ministers have declared their educational qualification to be between 10th and 12th standard, while 47 are graduates. One minister holds a diploma.
The ADR released the findings after analysing affidavits of 56 of the 58 ministers, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, from the 17th Lok Sabha and the current Rajya Sabha.
The details of Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan, who is the minister of consumer affairs, food and public distribution, and External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar were not analysed as they are not members of Parliament currently.
Of the 56 ministers analysed, 22 (39 per cent) have declared criminal cases against themselves, while 16 (29 per cent) have declared serious criminal cases, including those related to attempt to murder, communal disharmony, electoral violations etc., the ADR said.
When compared with data from the 16th Lok Sabha, the number of ministers with criminal cases has risen by eight percentage points, while the count of those with serious criminal cases has increased by 12 percentage points, it said.
Six ministers have declared cases related to promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc. Three ministers, including firebrand BJP leaders Giriraj Singh and Ashwini Kumar Chaubey, have declared cases of poll code violation against themselves.
The ADR said 51 (91 per cent) of the ministers are crorepatis. On an average, each minister has assets worth Rs 14.72 crore.
Four ministers, including Home Minister Amit Shah, Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Shiromani Akali Dal's Harsimrat Kaur Badal, have declared assets worth more than Rs 40 crore.
Only five ministers, including first-timers Kailash Chaudhary and Rameswar Teli, have declared assets worth less than Rs 1 crore.
These also include Pratap Chandra Sarangi from Odisha's Balasore who is famous for his austere lifestyle. He has declared assets worth around Rs 13 lakh, according to the ADR.
Eleven ministers are aged between 41 and 50, while 45 have declared their age to be between 51 and 70 years.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Bengal: Murder of Suvendu aide sparks political row; BJP, TMC trade barbs
Kolkata (PTI): The murder of a close aide of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari triggered political confrontation in West Bengal on Thursday, with the saffron camp accusing the TMC of fostering "lawlessness" and the Mamata Banerjee-led party rejecting the charge.
In a shocking development within 48 hours of the assembly poll verdict, Chandranath Rath, Adhikari's executive assistant, was shot dead in a brazen attack at Madhyamgram on Wednesday night, escalating tension in the area.
According to preliminary information, motorcycle-borne assailants intercepted Rath's vehicle near Doltala in Madhyamgram around 10.30 pm, forced it to stop and opened fire at point-blank range before fleeing.
Senior BJP leaders on Thursday alleged that the killing reflected the "complete collapse" of law and order in the state under the rule of the TMC government, which was "thrown out of power" in the assembly polls.
"A person closely associated with the leader of the opposition was targeted in a planned manner. This shows how law and order have deteriorated under the Mamata Banerjee government, which the people of Bengal have thrown out of power," a BJP leader said.
Adhikari on Thursday described the gunning down of his close aide as a "cold-blooded murder" and alleged that the killers had carried out a recce before executing the attack in North 24 Parganas district.
The Trinamool Congress dismissed the allegations and accused the BJP of attempting to politicise the incident before the investigation had progressed.
"The TMC has nothing to do with this unfortunate incident. The police are investigating the case professionally. The BJP should refrain from making baseless accusations. We are the ones who demanded a CBI probe of the killing," a senior Trinamool leader said.
The Congress demanded a transparent probe and criticised both the BJP and the TMC for "turning every tragedy into a political battle".
"The focus should remain on arresting the killers and ensuring justice, not on political point-scoring," a state Congress leader said.
The CPI(M) also condemned the killing and expressed concern over the deteriorating political atmosphere in the state.
"Violence and fear have increasingly become part of Bengal's political culture under the TMC rule. The administration must act firmly and impartially. We condemn the killing and demand strict action against those involved in the crime," a senior CPI(M) leader said.
