Guns and democracy in the Hindi hinterland: 70% NDA and INDIA candidates armed in UP, over 42% in Bihar

In 1948, the Constituent Assembly had turned down a proposal seeking a fundamental right to bear arms. 

MV Kamath and Hasrat Mohani tried to push for this right while underlining personal liberty and the colonial history of gun control. Before the assembly had voted, BR Ambedkar pointed to a change in circumstances. After all, freedom fighters had demanded such rights in pre-Independence India because the British tried to have a monopoly on weapons with laws such as the arms act.

Fast forward to 2024. 

After decades of amendments, legislation and judgments on possession of arms, ownership of weapons has been heavily regulated for common citizens. But several legislators, despite being given state security, have been allowed to possess arms. And a look at India’s poll battlegrounds suggests the trend is here to stay. For example, in the current Lok Sabha polls, a significant number of candidates – fielded by major political alliances NDA and INDIA in the first six phases – are armed:  at least 70 percent in Uttar Pradesh, and at least 42 percent in Bihar. 

From Union ministers to key opposition leaders

In Bihar’s Bodh Gaya, which is a significant Buddhist pilgrimage destination, the RJD candidate from the Lok Sabha constituency possesses a pistol and a rifle, valued at Rs 3.48 lakh. In the same seat, the Hindustani Awam Morcha candidate and former Bihar CM Jitan Ram Manjhi owns a weapon worth Rs 25,000 – he has six criminal cases against him.

In Uttar Pradesh, Defence Minister and BJP’s Lucknow candidate Rajnath Singh has a 32 bore and a double-barrel gun. He has no case against him. The Minister of State for Home and BJP candidate from Ujiarpur, Nityanand Rai, who faces three criminal cases, owns a rifle.

Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Purshottam Rupala, BJP candidates for the Jodhpur and Rajkot seats, respectively, also possess weapons as declared in their affidavits filed before the Election Commission.

It's not just BJP candidates who own weapons.

Akshay Yadav, the SP candidate from Firozabad and cousin of SP leader Akhilesh Yadav, owns two weapons. Aditya Yadav, an SP candidate from Badaun and the son of Shivpal Singh Yadav, has a pistol valued at Rs 2.68 lakh. SP MP Dharmendra Yadav, who is also Akhilesh Yadav’s cousin and in the fray again from Azamgarh, owns a pistol and a rifle worth Rs 1.84 lakh. He has four cases against him. 

Women leaders are not too far behind. 

Maneka Gandhi, former minister and BJP candidate from Sultanpur, owns a rifle – she has no case against her.

Krishna Devi Patel, the SP candidate from Banda, owns a rifle and a revolver valued at Rs 1 lakh. Meanwhile, the SP candidate from Moradabad, Ruchi Veera, and BJP candidates Rekha Verma and Rajni Rawat also possess weapons.

For the 67 seats going to polls in the first six phases in UP, the SP has fielded 53 candidates, with 37 of them (69.81 percent) having weapons. The Congress has 13 candidates, 6 of whom (46.15 percent) are armed. 

The Trinamool Congress has a single candidate who was armed, resulting in a 100 percent rate. Similarly, the RLD’s two candidates were both armed, also reaching 100 percent. 

The BJP has 65 candidates, with 48 (73.85 percent) possessing weapons. 

Overall, there are a total of 134 candidates from the INDIA and NDA blocs, of which 94 have weapons – an overall percentage of 70.15 percent. Many of them have more than one, with a total of 150 weapons. On average, this means each armed candidate possesses 1.5 weapons.

Those with the most weapons

BJP’s Domariyaganj candidate Jagdambika Pal, known as a former one-day CM of Uttar Pradesh, was convicted for “disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant”. He has declared three firearms in his possession: a revolver, a gun, and a rifle. Notably, the declared prices of these weapons in his affidavit are surprisingly low, listed as Rs 2,000, Rs 1,500, and Rs 2,000, respectively.

Karan Bhushan Singh, the son of former Wrestling Federation of India chairman Brij Bhushan Singh, is contesting the elections from family stronghold Kaiserganj on a BJP ticket. He has a gun valued at Rs 13 lakh, along with a pistol and a rifle, each valued at Rs 7 lakh, totaling Rs 27 lakh for the three weapons.

In Jaunpur constituency, Babu Singh Kushwaha from SP and Kripashankar Singh from BJP possess three weapons each. Kushwaha is facing 25 cases, including for alleged forgery and cheating. 

Similarly, SP candidates Lalji Verma from Ambedkar Nagar and Ram Shiromani Verma from Shrawasti also each own three weapons each. Former Union minister and BJP candidate from Pilibhit, Jitin Prasada, also owns three weapons. 

In the Farrukhabad seat, both the BJP and SP candidates own a pistol and a rifle, each valued at Rs 90,000 and Rs 75,000 respectively. In Bhadoi, Laliteshpati Tripathi from the TMC has two weapons and three criminal cases filed against him.

Accused of serious crimes

Amarpal, who’s running for SP in Baghpat, has a pistol and a rifle worth Rs 6 lakh. He’s accused of serious crimes like murder and attempted murder among the nine cases against him.  

Imran Masood, a Congress candidate from Saharanpur, has been convicted for making false statements in connection with an election and has charges of criminal intimidation and forgery for cheating against him. He owns a revolver. 

Of the 8,337 candidates in the fray across the country, as many as 1,644 have criminal cases registered against them, according to an analysis of data shared by the Association for Democratic Reforms. Among these candidates, 1,188 face serious criminal charges, including allegations related to murder, attempted murder, crimes against women, and hate speech.

Of the 64 INDIA and NDA candidates contesting the 32 seats in Bihar, 36 face at least 130 criminal cases. In the NDA camp, 16 candidates face 52 cases, while 20 INDIA candidates face 78 cases.

Within the NDA fold, BJP’s Khagaria candidate Rajesh Verma faces 12 criminal cases while RJD’s Vaishali candidate Vijay Kumar Shukla has 18 cases against him.

In UP, of the total 134 INDIA and NDA candidates contesting the 67 seats, 68 have 253 criminal cases against them. In the INDIA fold, 43 candidates face 196 cases while 25 NDA candidates face 57 cases.

Well-educated candidates also possess weapons. 

Dr Naval Kishor Shakya of the SP, who holds an MS in General Surgery from King George's Medical University, Lucknow, owns two weapons. Dr Ram Shankar Katheria, who has a PhD from Kanpur University, owns a revolver.

In Bihar, over 42% with weapons

In Bihar, 64 candidates of the NDA and INDIA are contesting 32 seats over six phases. Of these, 27 (42.19 percent) possess weapons.

The JDU has 14 candidates, with half (50 percent) of them being armed. The BJP has 12 candidates, with four (33.33 percent) possessing weapons. Out of five LJP candidates, two (40 percent) are armed. 

The HAM and CPM each have one candidate, both of whom possess weapons, resulting in a 100 percent rate for both parties.

The RJD has 20 candidates, with 10 (50 percent) owning weapons. The Congress has seven candidates, but only one (14.29 percent) is armed. The VIP has three candidates, with one (33.33 percent) possessing a weapon. The CPI has one candidate who does not possess any weapon.

Candidates from the BJP and VIP in East Champaran own weapons while the BJP candidate in West Champaran is also in possession of a firearm.

Radhamohan Singh, former Union agriculture minister and the BJP candidate from East Champaran, owns revolvers and a rifle. 

Dr Sanjay Jaiswal, the BJP candidate from West Champaran, owns a pistol and a rifle – his affidavit says the latter was a gift. It also mentions him facing five criminal cases.

Bima Bharati, a former Bihar government minister, owns two weapons valued at a total of Rs 4 lakh. Her annual income, as mentioned in her affidavit, is Rs 3.81 lakh. She also has three criminal cases lodged against her. 

Chief ministers too?

UP CM Yogi Adityanath owns a revolver and a rifle. According to his 2022 poll affidavit, he has four criminal cases filed against him, including allegations of “deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs”. 

His Maharashtra counterpart Eknath Shinde, in his 2019 affidavit for the Maharashtra polls, declared ownership of a revolver and pistol valued at Rs 4.45 lakh while Dr Mohan Yadav, the chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, owns a revolver and a gun worth 88,000.

Punjab CM Bhagwat Mann, who owns a gun, has one criminal case filed against him, according to his 2022 affidavit. Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren also owns a rifle worth Rs 55,000. 

India had inherited colonial-era laws on gun control but cleared its own arms Act in 1959. The legislation drew upon some of the existing framework but added new provisions. It divided firearms into banned bore and non-prohibited bore, with the former category, including automatic and semi-automatic guns, being only available to parties such as members of the military and law enforcement agencies.

But in 2012, an RTI response revealed that lethal, prohibited bore weapons had been sold to 82 MPs, of which 13 faced serious criminal cases, including charges of murder, attempt to murder, and kidnapping.

Citizens’ gun rights are a deeply debated topic. Mahatma Gandhi, known as the ambassador of non-violence, had once advocated that Indians be given the right to possess firearms for self-defense, subject to popular control. 

“The state exists on the basis of implied consent of the governed. The principal reason for people to come together under the organisation of the state is the fundamental principle that the State will be in a position to always protect the lives and properties of the citizens,” a bench of Justices K M Joseph and B V Nagarathna made these observations last year while hearing a petition seeking the transfer of a case. 

The state has a monopoly on violence, and when it longer has it, there is a risk of collapse. When lawmakers begin to possess weapons, it raises concerns about that ability to instill confidence in citizens regarding their safety.