9 of 11 newly elected Bihar MLCs are crorepatis; Rabri is richest: Report

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has declared that he has case relating to murder and attempt to murder against him.

Nine of the 11 newly elected members of legislative council (MLC) in Bihar are crorepatis and 45%, including chief minister Nitish Kumar, have criminal cases against them, according to a report released by the Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) on Friday.

RJD leaders Rabri Devi (C) and other candidates flash victory signs after filing their nomination papers for Bihar legislative council elections, in Patna.(PTI FILE PHOTO)

The richest of the members is former chief minister, Rabri Devi, with assets of Rs 17.92 crore. Rabri, who is the wife of Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad, is also the only woman member in the newly elected group.

Rameshwar Mahto of JD(U) follows Rabri in the richest MLCs category, with assets worth Rs 15.21crore.

ADR and Bihar Election Watch (BEW) state coordinator, Rajiv Kumar said the report is based on the MLCs’ affidavits obtained from the CEO of Bihar state election commission.

“The data is analysed and presented in good faith, with an intention to inform voters of the state,” he said, adding that more data would be released soon to spread awareness among the masses.

As per the report, 2 MLCs have declared serious criminal cases against them — chief minister Nitish Kumar for murder and attempt to murder, and his deputy Sushil Kumar Modi for bribery.

Apart from Nitish and Sushil Modi, Rabri Devi (RJD), Ram Chandra Purbey (RJD) and Santosh Kumar Suman (HAM-S) have declared criminal cases against them, the report said.

The average assets of the three RJD MLCs comes to Rs 10.07 crore, that of three JD(U) MLCs is Rs 7.34 crore and that of the three BJP MLCs is Rs 1.95 crore.

Two MLCs have declared their educational qualification to be between class 5 pass and class 12 pass while nine MLCs have declared themselves as graduates or above.

Four MLCs have declared their age to be between 41 to 50 years while two MLCs are in 51-60 years age group and the rest of them fall in the 61-80 years group.

Bihar is one of seven states in the country that has bicameral system of legislature with a legislative council and legislative assembly. The MLCs are elected by the members of lower house and elected people’s representatives like panchayat committee members, and electors of teachers, graduates, and others.