Almost 50% of ministers in India have criminal cases, ADR reveals, TDP leads
New Delhi: Nearly 47% of Ministers in India, including those in the Union Cabinet and State Cabinets have declared criminal cases against them. According to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) 27% of ministers are facing serious charges of murder, kidnapping and crimes against women.
The non-profit analysed self-sworn affidavits of 643 Ministers from 27 State Assemblies, three Union Territories and the Union Council of Ministers, according to a report by The Hindu. Of them, 302 Ministers reported criminal cases, including 174 with serious charges.
Among political parties, the BJP has 336 Ministers, 136 of whom face criminal cases, including 88 with serious allegations. The Congress has 45 Ministers with criminal cases, 18 of them serious. In the DMK, 27 of 31 Ministers face criminal charges, while 14 are serious. The TMC has 13 of 40 Ministers with criminal records, eight of them serious.
The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) recorded the highest proportion, with 22 of its 23 Ministers facing criminal cases, including 13 with serious charges. In AAP, 11 of 16 Ministers have cases, with five serious.
Nationally, 29 of the 72 Union Ministers declared criminal cases. More than 60% of Ministers in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Odisha, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Punjab, Telangana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, and Puducherry face criminal charges, while Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Nagaland, and Uttarakhand reported none.
The findings follows the Centre’s decision to introduced three Bills seeking to remove Prime Ministers, Chief Ministers and Ministers arrested or detained for 30 consecutive days on serious criminal charges carrying punishment of five years or more.
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.
Jaishankar embarks on 3-day visit to US
New Delhi (PTI): External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday embarked on a three-day visit to the US to attend a Washington-led ministerial meeting on critical minerals supply chain.
Jaishankar's visit assumes significance as it is being seen as an opportunity to address the sharp downturn in the relations between the two strategic partners.
It is expected that the minister will hold bilateral talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior officials of the Trump administration.
"External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will visit the United States from February 2 to 5 to participate in the Critical Minerals Ministerial convened by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio," the external affairs ministry said in a statement.
ALSO READ: UP: Boy tricked into giving away jewellery worth Rs 85 lakh in exchange for momo, case lodged
It said the ministerial will focus on supply chain resilience, clean energy transitions, and strategic cooperation in critical minerals.
"During the visit, the external affairs minister will also hold meetings with senior members of the US administration," it said.
India-US ties have been reeling under severe stress after Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to a whopping 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duties, for India's purchase of Russian crude oil.
Apart from the tariff issue, the relations witnessed a downturn on a number of other issues that included Trump's claim of ending the India-Pakistan conflict in May last year and Washington's new immigration policy.
