Assam Assembly Elections 2026: Criminal Records and Wealth of Winning Candidates
Overview of Election Results
File image of Assam Legislative Assembly (Photo: @AssamAssembly/X)
Guwahati, May 6: The recent Assam Assembly elections have highlighted the criminal backgrounds of some elected representatives, with 21 out of 126 winners (17%) admitting to having criminal cases against them.
Among these, 19 candidates (15%) reported serious criminal charges. In comparison, the previous elections in 2021 saw a higher incidence, with 34 winners (27%) declaring criminal cases, including 28 (22%) with serious charges.
This data comes from a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) and Assam Election Watch, which analyzed the self-declared affidavits of all winning candidates in the 2026 elections.
The report indicates that three of the winning candidates have faced charges related to attempted murder (IPC Section-307) and conspiracy (BNS Section-109). Additionally, two candidates reported cases involving crimes against women.
Notably, all ten candidates from the Bodoland People’s Front (BPF) have no criminal records, as per the report.
A breakdown of the winning candidates with criminal records shows that 7 (9%) of the 82 BJP candidates, 9 (47%) of the 19 INC candidates, and all candidates from AIUDF and AITC have declared criminal cases in their affidavits.
Furthermore, the report reveals that 7 (9%) of BJP's winners, 7 (37%) of INC's winners, and all candidates from AIUDF and AITC have serious criminal cases against them.
The report also highlights the increasing wealth of the winning candidates, with a significant number classified as 'crorepatis'.
Out of the 126 candidates analyzed, 107 (85%) are crorepatis, a rise from 67% in the 2021 elections. BJP leads with 74 (90%) of its candidates being crorepatis, followed by INC with 14 (74%) and BPF with 8 (80%).
The average assets of the winning candidates have surged to Rs. 8.82 crore, up from Rs. 4.59 crore in 2021. Historical data shows averages of Rs. 2.45 crore in 2016 and Rs. 1.65 crore in 2011.
For BJP's 82 winners, the average asset value is Rs. 7.50 crore, while INC's 19 winners average Rs. 6.51 crore. BPF's 10 winners have an average of Rs. 9.92 crore, and AGP's 10 winners average Rs. 2.81 crore.