ISLAMABAD – Free and Fair Election Network (Fafen) report has revealedthat a total of 70 MPAs across four provincial assemblies have criminalrecords against them.

The Fafen Parliament Monitor report shows that 33 Members of the ProvincialAssembly (MPAs) in Punjab have criminal record against them.

Out of these 18 belong to the PTI and 14 to the Pakistan MuslimLeague-Nawaz (PML-N). The only other MPA with criminal record is MuawiaAzam Tariq of the Pakistan Rah-e-Haq Party, a front for the bannedsectarian outfit Ahle-Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ).

In relative terms, the lawmakers with criminal record constitute just ninepercent of the lawmakers in Punjab Assembly.

In Sindh, 20 MPAs, or 12 percent, have reported criminal cases against themin documents filed with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), says theFafen report. Half of these lawmakers belong to the Pakistan Peoples Party(PPP). Among the remaining 10, four belong to parties in the GrandDemocratic Alliance (GDA), three to the PTI, two to Muttahida QaumiMovement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and one is still independent.

The number of MPAs with criminal record in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) andBalochistan assemblies is eight (six percent) and 10 (15 percent),respectively. Of the eight in KP, five belong to the PTI and three to theAwami National Party (ANP). In Balochistan, three Balochistan Awami Party(BAP), two ANP, and one PTI and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party MPA each havereported criminal record. The other three with criminal record are stillindependent.

The Fafen report also profiles MPAs in all four provincial assemblies interms of education qualifications, assets, profession and contribution toparty funds.