Mumbai: This could well be the emerging trend in the political landscape of Mumbai - fewer but clean candidates in fray in the coming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls.
Independent studies by two city-based groups have found that the number of candidates for the February 1 polls has dwindled by three per cent in comparison to 2002.
Then more than two-thirds of the candidates also faced serious charges ranging from murder, assault, rioting to illegal possession of arms.
The Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Action for Good Governance and Networking in India (Agni) rated the candidates on the basis of affidavits submitted by them while filing nominations.
"The study was to provide voters with more information on the candidates. Until now the information would lie in files in the election office. We have for the voters' benefit rated the candidates according to education profiles, economic status and criminal records," said an ADR spokesperson.
"The findings were prepared in the last six days. The calibre of the candidates put up by all major political parties has certainly improved compared to past experiences," Agni convener Gerson D'cunha said.
"Of the 2,252 affidavits BMC allowed us to access, we have found Shiv Sena accounts for 17 candidates with criminal background, followed by the Congress with 11, Samajwadi Party with six, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) with three and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the breakaway Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Nava Nirman Sena with two each," he said.
"Surprisingly, mobster-turned-legislator Arun Gawli's Akhil Bharatiya Sena has a clean slate. It has not fielded a single candidate with a criminal record," D'cunha added.
The studies have also thrown up interesting findings about the educational profiles and economic status of the candidates with a mixture of postgraduates and millionaires in the fray.
One-third of the candidates are school dropouts, while 130 among the rest hold post-graduate degrees. There are 267 graduates, 279 of the candidates have passed higher secondary level and 665 have passed the secondary school level, the studies show.
There are 93 millionaires with assets ranging from Rs 10 million to Rs 170 million.
However, almost half the candidates have not disclosed their permanent account number (PAN) details. There are 194 candidates who have financial liabilities ranging over Rs 5,00,000 and many owe money to government institutions.
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