Deputy CM Shivakumar Karnataka’s richest MLA, Congress legislators lead in criminal records: report
With its 223 MLAs holding a combined wealth of Rs 14,179 crore, Karnataka is the second-richest state in India in terms of average MLA assets, after Andhra Pradesh.
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Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has emerged as the wealthiest MLA in the state, with declared assets worth Rs 1,413 crore. (Source: Facebook) Karnataka Congress chief and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has emerged as the wealthiest MLA in the state, with declared assets worth Rs 1,413 crore, according to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms, which also reveals that the state has some of the wealthiest legislators in India, with multiple MLAs possessing assets exceeding Rs 300 crore.
According to the report on the financial status of MLAs across India, Karnataka leads in total assets, with its 223 MLAs holding a combined wealth of Rs 14,179 crore. This translates to an average asset value of Rs 63.58 crore per MLA, making Karnataka the second-richest state in terms of average MLA assets, after Andhra Pradesh.
Karnataka’s billionaire MLAs
Besides D K Shivakumar, other high-net-worth MLAs from Karnataka include K H Puttaswamy Gowda (independent, Gauribidanur) – Rs 1,267 crore; Priyakrishna (Congress, Govindarajanagar) – Rs 1,156 crore; HK Suresh (BJP, Belur) – Rs 435 crore; Deshpande Raghunath (Congress, Haliyal) – Rs 363 crore; M R Manjunath (JD(S), Hanur) – Rs 316 crore; S N Subbareddy (Congress, Bagepalli) – Rs 313 crore; and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Congress, Davanagere South) – Rs 312 crore. These figures indicate that Karnataka has 31 billionaire MLAs, making up 14 per cent of the state’s total legislators.
National comparison
Karnataka’s total MLA wealth surpasses that of Maharashtra (Rs 12,424 crore) and Andhra Pradesh (Rs 11,323 crore). While Andhra Pradesh holds the highest average wealth per MLA at Rs 65.07 crore, Karnataka follows closely behind at Rs 63.58 crore.
D K Shivakumar’s wealth places him among India’s richest politicians. In comparison, Maharashtra’s wealthiest MLA, the BJP’s Parag Shah, holds assets worth Rs 3,383 crore, making him India’s richest MLA.
Educational background of MLAs
Eighty-three of the Karnataka MLAs (37 per cent) have an education level between Class 5 and 12 (including diplomas), 114 MLAs (51 per cent) are graduates or hold professional degrees and 26 MLAs (12 per cent) have postgraduate or higher degrees.
This indicates that over 60 per cent of Karnataka’s legislators have at least graduate-level education, positioning the state among those with a higher percentage of educated representatives compared to states like Bihar and Maharashtra, where a larger proportion of MLAs have lower educational qualifications.
Criminal cases against Karnataka MLAs
Despite the high education levels, the state still sees a significant number of legislators with criminal backgrounds. The data shows that 122 MLAs (55 per cent) have declared criminal cases against them. Seventy-two MLAs (32 per cent) have serious criminal charges, including murder, attempt to murder, and crimes against women.
Dharwad Congress MLA Vinay Kulkarni, who has seven cases, including one related to murder. The report also shows that attempt-to-murder cases have been registered against Sathish Reddy M (BJP, Bommanahalli), B K Sanagameshwara (Congress, Bhadravathi), and H C Balakrishna (Congress, Magadi).
Meanwhile, crimes against women have been registered against nonagenarian Congress leader and Davangere South MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa, as well as Sanagameshwara, who faces five cases, including a rape charge.
Compared to other states, Karnataka ranks ninth in the country for the percentage of MLAs with criminal cases. In contrast, Andhra Pradesh has 79% MLAs with criminal records, while Kerala and Telangana have 69% each, and Maharashtra and Bihar have 65% and 66%, respectively.
Congress MLAs have more criminal cases than BJP, JD(S)
Congress legislators in Karnataka have the highest number of criminal cases, surpassing their counterparts from the Opposition BJP and JD(S).
>Congress: 52 per cent of its MLAs have declared criminal cases and 30 per cent have serious charges, including those related to murder, attempt to murder, and crimes against women.
>BJP: 39 per cent of its MLAs have criminal cases, while 26 per cent face serious charges.
>JD(S): 40 per cent of its MLAs have criminal cases, with 30 per cent facing serious charges.
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