Candidates with criminal records to contest BBMP polls

Bengaluru: As many as 1765 candidates have jumped in the fray for the battle for Bengaluru municipal polls which is two weeks away. while the ground issues are many, the greatest concern is of candidates' criminal past. Political parties have given tickets to people with criminal backgrounds, including rowdy-sheeters, for this election.

Congress Candidate KS samiullah who is accused in a murder case said, "What cases? nobody talks of these cases all these years, suddenly at election time, they all want to drag it".

Samiullah also a corporator five years back is looking forward to a keen contest is confident of victory on a Congress ticket from jayanagar east ward.

The JD(S), which got its candidates to take an oath of integrity last week, ironically has fielded a father-son duo who have 15 cases against them. Party patriarch deve gowda claims he's unhappy, but helpless, as good candidates have defected to the Congress.

"I 100 per cent accept, that the criminal records of this two candidates, to be frank, is bad. I registered , I do not want to allow this two candidates to contest. Some of the muslim leaders brought up in public life, they all left and gone to congress" said JDs national president HD Deve Gowda.

But the JD(S) has also fielded other history sheeters like Praveen alias Malayali Praveen in central Bengaluru and Maarimuthu in east bengaluru, who was earlier notoriously known as the 'hooch queen'. To counter her, the congress has fielded another history sheeter Elumalai.

"Just because an FIR is registered, you can't call them criminal" said Bengaluru CM Siddaramaiah.

With candidates with a suspect history in almost every zone in bengaluru, the concern among civic groups is not whether they will have a corporation committed to development, but whether they are headed to a goonda-raj of sorts. Apart from candidates with criminal history, there are other nominees like realtors and contractors who form lobbies of their own, and may not always have the city's welfare in their minds, if elected.