28 ministers in new Modi cabinet have declared criminal cases: ADR

Twenty-eight ministers in the new NDA 2.0 government, led by the BJP's Narendra Modi, have criminal cases against them.

Of these, 19 are facing serious charges such as attempted murder, crimes against women and hate speech, noted independent rights watchdog and activist body Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR).

Among the ministers facing the most severe allegations, two have declared there are 'attempt to murder' cases against them under the Indian Penal Code, section 307.

They are Shantanu Thakur, minister of state for ports, shipping and waterways, and Sukanta Majumdar, minister of state for education and the development of the North-East, the ADR reports. Both belong to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The ADR report also highlighted that five ministers have cases pending against them related to crimes against women.

These are—in addition to Thakur and Majumdar, who also face these charges—minister of state (MoS) for home Bandi Sanjay Kumar, MoS for petroleum and natural gas and tourism Suresh Gopi and tribal affairs minister Jual Oram. Again, all of them are from BJP.

Additionally, the ADR report identifies eight ministers with cases of hate speech against them.

A total of 28 out of 71 ministers (39 per cent) have declared criminal cases, it said.

The new Council of Ministers that took the oath on 9 June has 72 members, including prime minister Narendra Modi.

Based on PTI inputs