14 of 28 CMs face serious criminal charges; 4,192 cases pending against MPs and MLAs, Supreme Court told
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "14 of 28 CMs face serious criminal charges; 4,192 cases pending against MPs and MLAs, Supreme Court told")
Around 4,192 cases are pending against sitting MPs and MLAs, of which 519 have been pending for more than a decade Photograph: (AFP)
The amicus pleaded with the apex court to designate special courts to expeditiously hold trials in these cases against both sitting and former lawmakers. He also asked the Supreme Court to direct the jurisdictional High Courts to actively monitor the progress of these trials.
The Supreme Court has been informed that 14 of the total 28 chief ministers face serious criminal charges, while more than 4,000 cases are pending against MPs and MLAs across the country. The disclosure came in a report submitted to the apex court on Monday by senior advocate Vijay Hansaria, amicus curiae in a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking the expeditious disposal of criminal cases against lawmakers.
The PIL was filed by BJP leader and lawyer Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay.
Also Read: ‘Don’t beg,’ Pakistan strictly warns its Umrah pilgrims, tells them to fully comply with Saudi laws
Which CM faces most charges?
The report reveals that Telangana CM Revanth Reddy has the highest number of 89 charges against him. West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari is the next with 29 pending cases against him.
Karnataka CM D K Shivakumar and Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu both have 19 cases each, while Kerala CM V D Sathesan has 18 cases pending against him.
Trending Stories
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
)
)
&im=FitAndFill=(700,400))
)
)
)
Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren has 5 pending cases, Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis and Himachal CM Sukhvinder Singh have 4 each, TN CM C Joseph Vijay and Bihar CM Samrat Choudhary have 2 cases each, while four CM, including P S Tamang (Sikkim), Bhagwant Mann (Punjab), Mohan Charan Majhi (Odisha) and Bhajan Lal Sharma (Rajasthan) have one case each.
The report clarifies that figure of 4,192 is based on information received from High Courts and their websites, while adding that the Allahabad High Court did not submit a report, and its figure of 1,171 cases is from its website as of February 2024.
Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha MPs also facing cases
The report also reveals that 251 of the 543 Lok Sabha members and 75 of the 233 Rajya Sabha members also face criminal cases.
In total, around 4,192 cases are pending against sitting MPs and MLAs, of which 519 have been pending for more than a decade, while investigations have not yet begun in 700 cases, of which 360 are stuck for more than three years without the chargesheet even being filed.
95% of MPs from Kerala face charges
The affidavit discloses that 95% of the MPs from Kerala face charges, which is the highest in the country.
Kerala is followed by Telangana with 82% of its MPs facing serious charges. Then comes Odisha with 76%.
Haryana and Chhattisgarh have the lowest tallies, with both having a single MP each facing charges.
58% MLAs in Bengal, 57% in Keralam facing cases
Among MLAs facing serious cases, West Bengal leads at 58%, with Kerala being a close second at 57%, and Andhra Pradesh at 56%, followed by Telangana (49%) and Odisha (45%).
After the revelations, the amicus has pleaded with the apex court to designate special courts to expeditiously hold trials in these cases against both sitting and former lawmakers.
He has also asked the Supreme Court to direct the jurisdictional High Courts in these cases to actively monitor the progress of these trials.
