What are National Parties?
By BYJU'S Exam Prep
Updated on: November 14th, 2023
A national party, as determined by the Election Commission of India (ECI), is any party that secures at least 6% of the vote in four or more states in Lok Sabha or assembly elections. The party must have at least 2% of the total Lok Sabha seats, and its candidates must be from at least 3 states.
The registration of political national parties is governed by the provisions of section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. The party seeking registration with the Commission shall make an application as per the prescribed guidelines within a period of 30 days from the date of its constitution. Election Commission as per Article 324 of the Commission of India and Section 29A of the RPA.
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National Parties in India
To be eligible to be termed as a National Party or the National Political Party of India, a political party has to fulfill the three basic criteria overlayed by the ECI:
- Secure at least six percent of the valid votes polled in any four or more states in the general election to the Lok Sabha or the State Legislative Assembly.
- Win at least four seats in the Lok Sabha from any state or state.
- Win at least two percent of the seats in the Lok Sabha, and these members must be elected from at least three different states.
List of Political Parties in India
In India, there are eight (8) recognized National Parties:
- Indian National Congress (INC)
- Communist Party of India (CPI)
- Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)
- Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)
- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
- All India Trinamool Congress (TMC)
- Marxist Communist Party CPI (M)
The Election Commission (EC) has amended the rules, under which it will now review the status of state and national parties every ten years instead of the current five. So now the current status of national and state parties will remain the same till 2026.
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