About 32% of candidates contesting in the first phase of the Bihar Assembly elections on November 6 have declared criminal cases against themselves, with 27% facing serious charges such as murder, attempted murder, and crimes against women, according to an analysis by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
The analysis found that 33 candidates have declared cases related to murder and 86 face charges of attempted murder. A total of 42 candidates have declared cases related to crimes against women, including two charged with rape.
Among political parties, the CPI and CPI(M) top the list, with all their candidates having declared criminal cases. The CPI has fielded five candidates, while the CPI(M) has three. They are followed by CPI(ML), with 93% of its candidates facing criminal charges, RJD at 76%, and BJP at 65%.
All major parties contesting the first phase have fielded between 20% and 100% candidates with declared criminal cases.
The ADR and Bihar Election Watch analysed self-sworn affidavits of 1,303 of the 1,314 candidates contesting across 121 constituencies. Of these, 423 (32%) declared criminal cases, while 354 (27%) face serious criminal charges.
The analysis also found that 75%—or 91 out of 121 constituencies—are “red alert” constituencies, defined as those where three or more contesting candidates have declared criminal cases.
The report further highlights the growing role of “money power” in elections, with 519 (40%) candidates identified as crorepatis. Among major parties, the RJD tops the list, with 68 (97%) of its 70 candidates being crorepatis, followed by the BJP (92%), JD(U) (91%), Congress (78%), LJP (Ram Vilas) (77%), and Jan Suraaj (71%).
Left parties rank lower on the wealth scale, with CPI(M) at 67%, CPI at 60%, and CPI(ML) at 14%. The average assets per candidate in Phase 1 of the Bihar Assembly elections stand at ₹3.26 crore.