23 per cent candidates in Goa polls have criminal records

Out of the 129 candidates contesting the Goa assembly elections, 30 candidates or 23 per cent have criminal cases pending against them. Vicky Nanjappa reports.

In the 2007 assembly elections for Goa, 18 per cent candidates had declared criminal cases against themselves. This is as per a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms and Goa Election Watch.

Among major parties, every party has given tickets to candidates who have declared criminal cases. The Indian Nationalist Congress has 9 out of 33 (27 per cent), the Bharatiya Janata Party has 9 out of 27 (33 per cent), All India Trinamool Congress has 4 out of 18 (22 per cent), the Nationalist Congress Party has 2 out of 7 (29 per cent) and IND candidates have 3 out of 18 (17 per cent) candidates with pending criminal cases.

Out of these 30 candidates with declared criminal cases, 7 have declared serious criminal cases like attempt to murder, theft, extortion etc. INC has 2, Goa Vikas Party has 1, United Goans Democratic Party has 1, NCP has 1 and 2 such candidates from IND.

Among these 30 candidates of who have declared criminal cases against themselves, the following candidates have declared the highest number of criminal cases against them:

1) Fransico Xavier Pacheco (of GVP contesting from Nuvem) has declared 10 cases against himself including charges related to extortion and abetment of suicide 2)Arjun Anil Salgaocar (IND contesting from Sanvordem) has declared 3 cases with charges related to theft 3) Atanasio Monserrate (of INC contesting from St. Cruz) has declared 2 cases against himself including 3 charges related to Voluntarily Causing hurt.

Govind Gaude, an IND candidate from Priol has declared 1 charge related to attempt to murder.

Among other major parties, a total of 92 candidates out of 129 analysed i.e. 71 per cent were crorepatis. In 2007, there were 41 per cent crorepati candidates. 

The candidates with maximum assets in is Dinar Purshottam Kamat Tarcar of Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party from St Cruz constituency with assets worth Rs 211.76 crore followed by Nirmala Sawant, IND from Cumbarjua with Rs 36.30 crore and Joaquim Alemao of INC from Cuncolim constituency with assets worth Rs 31.26 crore. 

A total of 3 candidates out of 129 analysed declared assets less than Rs 5 lakh. A total of 29 (22 per cent) candidates out of 129 analysed declared liabilities of Rs 1 crore or above.

Among major parties, the average asset per candidate for INC is 8.44 crore, for BJP is 4.21 crore, For NCP is 10.79 crore, for AITC is 1.96 crore, for GVP is 3.95 crore, for UGDP is 81.65 lakh, for the Communist Part of India is 33.83 lakh, MGP is 33.50 crore and IND is 7.20 crore. 

Forty three per cent candidates(55 of 129 analysed)were graduates and above. Out of 215 candidates contesting for of Goa Assembly Elections 2012, only 9 (4 per cent) candidates are women. 

Asset Increase:

Number of re-contesting members of Legislative Assembly analysed for Goa 2012 Assembly Elections -- 35

The average asset of these MLAs as declared in 2007 is Rs 2,70,06,081 (2.70 crore). The average asset of these MLAs as declared in 2012 is Rs 8,10,00,111 (8.10 crore). Average asset growth for these re-contesting MLAs is Rs 5,39,94,030 (5.39 crore). 

Average percentage growth in assets for these MLA is 200 per cent.

Shyam Satardekar of INC from Curchorem constituency has the highest increase in asset worth Rs 25.30 crore (from 4.89 crore to 30.20 crore), followed by Joaquim Alemao of INC from Cuncolim constituency with an asset increase of Rs 22.13 crore (from 9.12 crore to 31.26 crore) and Pratapsingh Rane of INC from Poreim constituency with an asset increase of Rs 17.04 crore (from 8.82 crore to 25.87 crore).

The highest percentage increase (1,559 per cent) has been for Alexio Reginaldo Loourenco of INC from Curtorim constituency. His assets rose from 7 lakh in 2007 to 1.16 crore in 2012.

He is followed by Pratap Gauns of INC from Sanquelim constituency with a percentage increase of 1,526 per cent (5.58 lakh in 2007 to 90.81 lakh in 2012) and Nilkanth Halarnkar of NCP from Tivim constituency with an increase of 968 per cent (30.09 lakh in 2007 to 3.21 crore in 2012). 

ITR and PAN

Among all the candidates analysed Shyam Satardekar (INC) has declared the highest annual income in his affidavit submitted to the ECI at the time of his nomination at Rs 5.05 crore followed by Govind Sawant (INC) at Rs 3.39 crore, Nirmala Sawant (IND) at Rs 3.16 crore and Joaquim Alemao (INC) at Rs 2.11 crore as per their last filed Income Tax Returns.

A total of 10 candidates (8 per cent) out of the 129 candidates analysed by the Goa Election Watch have declared that they have never filed income tax returns.

Out of the 10 candidates analysed who have never filed income tax returns, AITC has 4 (22 per cent of the 18 candidates analysed) followed by UGDP with 3 (43 per cent of the 7 candidates analyzed), CPI with 2 (50 per cent of the 4 candidates analysed), BJP with 1 (4 per cent of the 27 candidates analysed) who have never filed ITR. 

Top 3 candidates with maximum assets but who have never filed IT returns are Ramakant Borkar of UGDP contesting from Cortalim has the highest total assets of Rs. 1.76 crore, followed by Mario Morais of AITC from Cuncolim with assets of Rs 1.74 crore and Vishnu Wagh of BJP from St Andre with Rs 1.25 crore respectively.

Five (4 per cent) candidates have not declared their PAN details of which AITC has the maximum number of candidates (3) who have not declared their PAN details. CPI has 2 out of 4 candidates analysed who have not declared their PAN card details.