Rajasthan BJP MLA Kanwarlal Meena, who faces disqualification, and his 26-year, 27-case run

Meena was initially acquitted by a trial court but was later convicted by an appellate court in 2020, a decision that was upheld by the Rajasthan High Court earlier this month. The Supreme Court then rejected his plea challenging the conviction.

Sources said the BJP is still looking at ways to circumvent the termination of Meena’s Assembly membership, including by seeking the Governor’s pardon or a commutation of his three-year sentence to 23 months.

While the 2005 case now hangs over Meena’s future, he has had at least 27 cases lodged against him. An analysis by The Indian Express shows these range from rioting, assaulting public servants, promoting enmity on the basis of religion and defiling places of worship to house trespassing.

Senior advocate and former Chief Justice of the Orissa High Court S Muralidhar had first stated in the Supreme Court that a total of 27 cases have been lodged against Meena so far. As per Meena’s lawyers, he has been acquitted in almost all the cases.

Dismissing his petition challenging the High Court’s order in the 2005 revolver case, the Supreme Court had remarked, “Elected representatives need to discipline themselves… This is one of those rare cases where somebody has been convicted, otherwise you do everything and anything and get away with it, without any action against you.”

A lawyer for Meena said Wednesday that the 2005 case will be the first instance of him serving a sentence. “All have been decided, nothing left, except one. Only one case is left; in the rest he has either been acquitted or a raazinama (compromise) has been reached.”

Meena’s first case goes back to 1999, when as a youth about 25 years of age, he was accused of an attempt to murder and other crimes by one Girdhari Lal Meena in Aklera, Jhalawar. He was convicted in 2003.

In his second case the same year, he faced charges under seven sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty. But in this case, a compromise was agreed upon in 2011.

The subsequent cases included alleged trespassing and damage to a mosque; damaging a bus when asked for the fare; obstructing a national highway and injuring a public servant; setting fire to a complainant’s tractor, motorcycle and farm equipment, and theft; setting fire to a complainant’s house and looting his luggage; defiling religious books and destruction of articles in a mosque; shouting slogans against a community, and destruction of property; impersonating a public servant; assaulting Dr S D Sharma, the then assistant director with the state health department in 2011; thrashing social activists participating in a ‘Jawabdehi Yatra’ to demand an accountability law for government and elected officials in January 2016; apart from at least two cases for extortion.

In the 2016 case, women activists under the banner of Aruna Roy and Nikhil Dey’s Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) had accused Meena of abuse and molestation. However, he was acquitted by a trial court and by an additional district judge too, though the case is still pending in the High Court.

The last known case filed against Meena was in August 2023, when Narpat Singh, head constable at Baran’s Atru police station, lodged a case under 12 IPC sections, including for “assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty”.

In his 2023 Assembly poll affidavit, Meena had listed the 2005 revolver case, the 2016 Jawabdehi Yatra case, and three cases from 2023 as pending. He had also stated he was convicted in two cases – his first ever case in 1999 and the 2005 revolver case.

In 18 of the 27 cases, Meena has been accused of rioting, with 14 of them including rioting while armed with a deadly weapon. Similarly, eight cases have been lodged against him for promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, and committing acts prejudicial to the maintenance of harmony; three cases were lodged for injuring or defiling places of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class. There are also five cases against him for desecrating the Quran.

Eight cases have also been lodged against Meena for assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty, with four of them including voluntarily causing hurt and one for threat of injury to a public servant. In the Supreme Court, senior advocate S Muralidhar termed attacks on public servants as Meena’s “specialisation”.

Meena has also been accused of or convicted for house-trespass, forgery, criminal intimidation, wrongful restraint, unlawful assembly. He has also faced FIRs under sections of the Arms Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, and Rajasthan Excise Act.

On Monday, a delegation led by Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasra met Governor Haribhau Bagade seeking the termination of Meena’s membership. Another delegation, led by Leader of the Opposition Tika Ram Jully, met Speaker Vasudev Devnani on Tuesday reminding him that he holds a “constitutional post” and that “the essence of the Constitution lies in impartiality and democratic values”.

Devnani too met Bagade on Tuesday, just a day after Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma met the Governor on Monday. While these were officially cited as “courtesy calls”, the meetings have given rise to the speculation that the BJP may be hoping to seek a pardon for Meena from the Governor.

Meena’s lawyers said a revision petition will soon be filed in the Supreme Court. Assuring the Congress delegation of a “quick and just decision”, the Speaker’s office said it has asked the state Advocate General to share his opinion, which is expected to be received by the Assembly “in a day or two”.

“To terminate the MLA’s membership, all aspects of the court’s judgement have to be studied so that no injustice is done to the MLA,” Devnani said.

Following Meena’s surrender Wednesday, LoP Jully termed it a “blot on democracy”, saying it is unprecedented that the Assembly Speaker has not cancelled the membership even 20 days after the sentencing. Dotasra said the party will approach the Supreme Court too, if required. However, BJP spokesperson Laxmikant Bhardwaj countered, saying: “Politicians face a lot of cases but they are considered guilty only after the court finds them to be true. Until the court agrees, we can’t hold someone as a criminal.”