NEW DELHI (AP) — India's recent national election delivered a historic victory to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist party, but also exposed the influence of money, power and questionable morality on the world's largest democracy.

Nearly 43% of the new members of the lower house of Parliament that convenes Monday for the first time since the election won despite facing criminal charges.

According to a report by the civic group Association of Democratic Reforms, more than a quarter of those relate to rape, murder or attempted murder.

The loophole that allows them to take office is they have not been convicted — in part because the Indian legal system has a huge backlog of an estimated 30 million cases.

When asked about the charges against them, they usually say rivals framed them.