Nearly half of Lok Sabha MPs face criminal cases: Indian top court informed
New Delhi: Nearly half of the sitting members of India’s Lok Sabha face criminal cases, with hundreds of cases classified as serious, according to an affidavit submitted to the Indian Supreme Court, exposing the deep criminalization of Indian politics.
According to Kashmir Media Service, senior advocate Vijay Hansaria, appointed amicus curiae in a PIL seeking speedy disposal of cases against lawmakers, told the court that 251 of the 543 Lok Sabha members have declared criminal cases against them. Of these, 170 involve serious offences punishable with imprisonment of five years or more.
In the Rajya Sabha, 75 of 233 members face criminal cases, including 40 classified as serious. The data, cited from the Association for Democratic Reforms, also revealed that 14 of the 28 state chief ministers have declared criminal cases against them. Telangana Chief Minister Anumula Revanth Reddy tops the list with 89 cases, followed by West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari with 29 and Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar with 19.
The affidavit said 4,192 criminal cases remain pending against current and former MPs and MLAs across the country. Despite Supreme Court and high court monitoring since 2018, the number of pending cases has remained almost unchanged. Data compiled from high courts showed that while 1,243 cases were decided in 2025, 1,050 new cases were registered in the same year. State-wise, Kerala had the highest proportion with 19 of its 20 MPs facing criminal cases, including 11 serious ones. In Telangana, 14 of 17 MPs face charges, in Odisha 16 of 21, and in Jharkhand 10 of 14. Tamil Nadu reported 26 of 39 MPs with criminal cases.
Around half of the MPs from Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Bihar, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh also face charges. Hansaria urged the Supreme Court to ensure closer monitoring and proposed that designated Special Courts exclusively conduct trials of MPs and MLAs. He suggested cases be concluded within one year of framing of charges and that high courts conduct monthly monitoring of cases pending for over three years. The amicus is assisting the court in a petition filed by BJP leader Ashwini Upadhyay. In November 2023, the Supreme Court had directed high courts to set up special benches to monitor such cases and ensure speedy disposal.
