Around 42 per cent of India’s chief ministers have declared criminal charges against them, data from election affidavits analysed by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) has revealed at a time when the Opposition has accused the Narendra Modi government of trying to impose a dictatorship by introducing bills to remove CMs, ministers and even the prime minister if they are arrested on serious charges.
Union home minister Amit Shah on Wednesday placed the 130th amendment to the Constitution which provides for the removal of the Prime Minister, chief ministers and ministers across the Centre, states and Union Territories arrested on serious charges and in jail for 30 days.
The Opposition says the amendment is dangerous because it provides grounds for the removal of elected representatives even without being convicted in criminal cases. .
A report prepared by the ADR in December 2024 with information from affidavits filed by the chief ministers to the Election Commission of India revealed that 13 out of the 31 chief ministers have declared criminal charges against them.
Among them,10 chief ministers are facing serious charges like attempt to murder, kidnapping, bribery and criminal intimidation. Of these 10, seven CMs are from Opposition-ruled states, two are from BJP allies and one is from the BJP.
Here is the data from the ADR, which must be read with a couple of caveats. First, cases are often filed against politicians – who may assume constitutional roles later in their political career – for something as simple as a protest. Second, some chief ministers – such as Uttar Pradesh CM Adityanath – have been accused by rival politicians of getting the police to drop cases against themselves.
With those out of the way, here is a list of the chief ministers in India who are facing serious charges. Such charges, according to the ADR, either have a maximum punishment of five years or more; are non-bailable and cognizable; are electoral offences; are offences related to the loss of exchequer; assault, murder, kidnap, rape; offences mentioned under Section 8 of the Representation of Peoples Act; offences under Prevention of Corruption Act; and crimes against women and children.
All data from ADR’s Analysis of Current Chief Ministers from 28 State Assemblies and 3 Union Territories of India 2024.
1. Telangana chief minister Anumula Revanth Reddy
2. Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin
Party: Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)
Total cases: 47
Number of cases under serious IPC sections: 11
Details of IPC sections:
3. Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu
Party: Telugu Desam Party (TDP)
Total cases: 19
Alleged serious offences: 32
Details of IPC sections:
4. Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah
Party: Indian National Congress
Total cases: 13
Alleged serious offences under various IPC sections: 6
Details of IPC sections:
5. Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren
Party: Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)
Total cases: 5
Number of charges under serious IPC sections: 7
Details of IPC sections:
6. Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis
Party: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
Total cases: 4
Alleged offences under serious IPC sections: 2
Details of IPC sections:
7. Himachal Pradesh chief minister Sukhvinder Singh
Party: Indian National Congress
Total cases: 4
Alleged offences under serious IPC sections: 1
Details of IPC sections:
8. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan
Party: Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM)
Total cases: 2
Alleged offences under serious IPC sections: 2
Details of IPC sections:
9. Sikkim chief minister P.S. Tamang
Party: Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM)
Total cases: 1
Alleged serious IPS offences: 1
Details of IPC sections:
10. Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann
Party: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
Total cases: 1