Karnataka Elections 2008 – Phase 3
Candidate Criminal and Financial Record
Karnataka Election Watch 2008

In the 69 Assembly constituencies going to the polls on May 22, 2008 in Phase 3 there are 36
candidates with a criminal record. A full list of the candidates is enclosed. Among the major
parties, the BJP has 12 candidates having a criminal record, INC 6, JDS 7, and other parties 11.
There are 5 candidates who are charged with murder or attempt to murder. Several of them are
charged with other violent crimes like assault with deadly weapons and so on.
Women Candidates
There are only 23 women candidates out of a total of 415 candidates considered by Karnataka
Election Watch. The BJP has 2, BSP 3, INC 3, JDS 6, JDU 6 and others 3. In the first phase there
were a total of 17 women, and 14 women candidates in the second phase from the major parties.
The total percentage of women in phase 3 is about 5.5% and is extremely low.
Financial Record
The total assets declared by all the 415 candidates considered by KEW for phase 3 was an
impressive Rs.650 crores, with average candidate assets of Rs.1.57 crores. The INC led the
parties with total declared candidate assets of Rs.347 crores and average candidate assets of
Rs.5.03 crores. The BJP had total assets of Rs.155 crores and average of Rs.2.26 crores, JDS
Rs.84 crores and Rs.1.22 crores, and BSP Rs.35 crores and Rs.0.52 crores.

the three major parties account for 89.2% of total candidate assets with
average candidate assets of Rs.2.83 crores. Clearly, elections have become a rich man’s game. It
is very difficult for Independent candidates to win and the major parties give tickets to candidates
with very high level of assets. Then there are 24 candidates who have “High Assets” over Rs. 5
crores. The BJP has 8, INC 13, JDS 2, and BSP 1. Details are enclosed. There are 41 candidates
who have declared very low assets of Rs. 1 lakh or less.
The total liabilities of all candidates were Rs.75.19 crores. The BJP candidates had liabilities of
Rs.15.79 crores, INC Rs.37.22 crores, JDS Rs.13.97 crores, and others Rs.8.21 crores. The
average liability of the candidates from the three parties was Rs.32 lakhs.
Assembly Elections 2008 Phase 3 Compiled by Karnataka Election Watch and ADR
In summary, the three major parties (BJP, INC, JDS) have 49.9% of all candidates. These
candidates have 90.2% of assets of all candidates from all parties put together. Their average
assets are 180% of the average assets of all candidates. Their average liabilities are 178.6% of
that of all candidates.

Comparing Financial Record with 2004 Data
As many as 69 candidates reported a very steep increase in total assets between the 2004
Assembly Elections and this election. The average increase in assets was a huge 339.5%.

Criminal Records
There are 36 candidates with a criminal record. Among the major parties, the BJP has 12
candidates having a criminal record, INC 6, JDS 7, and other parties 11. There are 5 candidates
who are charged with murder or attempt to murder. Several of them are charged with other
violent crimes like assault with deadly weapons and so on. The following table gives details of
the serious crimes.

Changes in Criminal records
There are at least 22 candidates whose criminal record has changed since 2004. The details are
given in the enclosures. Of this, there are 7 from the BJP, 8 from the INC, 5 from the JDS and 2
from other parties. This needs to be investigated by the authorities.

Conclusions
The overall quality of candidates leaves much to be desired. The criminal records in particular are
a little alarming. Unless this trend is checked, elections, democracy and overall governance will
suffer. A lot of candidates are industrialists from the real estate, liquor, mining and other
businesses. Unless business interests are aligned to citizen interests there is a clear conflict of
interest. Would such representatives work for citizens’ interests or for their business interests?
The average assets of candidates from the major parties were Rs.2.84 crores. A lot of candidates
have reported huge increase in their assets from the previous elections. This means that elections
are mostly open to the rich and that the stakes are very high and rising from election to election.
The steep rise in assets also needs to be investigated so that public trust is restored.

Detailed report now available at

About KEW
Karnataka Election Watch (KEW) is part of a nationwide movement to improve democracy. It is a
citizen led non-political, non-partisan effort. This time several NGOs activists and civil society
organizations in Karnataka are participating in this effort.