Congress MP Gogoi calls for greater public awareness on criminal backgrounds of poll candidates

New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI) Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Wednesday stressed the need for greater public awareness about criminal backgrounds of candidates in elections and said people had the right to know the details of their nominees.
    "This is a very serious issue. The number of people with criminal cases contesting and winning elections is rising," he said at a webinar organised by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).
    Gogoi also emphasised the challenges in curbing this trend.
    Political parties respond to public pressure and, if voters actively demand cleaner candidates, the parties may be compelled to change their approach, he said.
    "Political parties take cues from public sentiment. If the people of Delhi can push for action on air pollution, they can also press for cleaner politics. We must raise awareness and signal to parties that we will reward those who choose candidates with no criminal records," Gogoi said.
    The Congress leader also laid stress on the need to make information about candidates' criminal records more accessible to the public.
    "People have the right to know the background of candidates. Right now, much of this information is only available in election affidavits, which are not always easy for voters to access in a user-friendly format. The media plays a crucial role in highlighting this information but it needs to be more widespread," he said.
    Gogoi also acknowledged the importance of judicial intervention but maintained that the political leadership must take responsibility. "Political parties have a role to play."
    He also raised an academic question about whether individuals convicted of crimes should be permanently barred from contesting elections.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)