Kamal Ghorui
Kolkata: Of the 1,478 candidates contesting in the first phase of Bengal polls, almost one-fifth are crorepatis, most of them being TMC contenders. The poorest candidate, with assets of Rs 500, is from the new AJUP.Of the 152 BJP nominees, 106 have pending criminal cases, including 96 named in serious offences. In TMC, 63 of the 148 nominees have pending criminal cases, with 48 having records of serious offences.The figures were revealed by ADR and West Bengal Election Watch after analysing the poll affidavits of 1,475 candidates, while those of three had glitches.While 228 candidates have assets ranging from Rs 1 crore to Rs 5 crore, 46 hold assets between Rs 5 crore and Rs 10 crore. Thirty-five contestants have stated their assets to be more than Rs 10 crore. As many as 106 candidates of TMC, 71 of BJP, 50 of Congress, and 24 of CPM are crorepatis, the data showed.Leading the list is TMC’s Jangipur candidate Jakir Hossain, with assets of over Rs 133 crore; followed by the party’s Barjora candidate Goutam Mishra (Rs 105 crore); and Durgapur West contender Kabi Datta (Rs 72 crore).The poorest candidate with Rs 500 is AJUP’s Rubiya Begam, contesting from Durgapur East, followed by SUCI’s Midnapore’s Sushrita Saren (Rs 700) and Jalpaiguri’s Jashoda Barman (Rs 924).The analysis showed 23% of contenders have pending criminal cases, with 20% accused of serious offences.
