- The Election Commission (EC) recognised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as a national party.
- The Trinamool Congress (TMC), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Communist Party of India (CPI), lost their national party status.
- The EC’s decision was based on a review of the parties’ poll performances — the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls and 21 state assembly polls since 2014.
- The status of a national party ensures that the party’s symbol is reserved for its candidates across the country, and it gets land for an office in the national capital.
- Besides Delhi, Goa and Punjab, AAP became a state party in Gujarat after the 2022 Assembly elections.
The Election Commission (EC) recognised the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as a national party. The Trinamool Congress (TMC), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Communist Party of India (CPI), however, lost their national party status. It is a boost for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections next year.
The EC’s decision was based on a review of the parties’ poll performances — the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls and 21 state assembly polls since 2014. Besides other benefits, the status of a national party ensures that the party’s symbol is reserved for its candidates across the country, and it gets land for an office in the national capital.
Acting under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, which stipulates the criteria for recognition as a national or state party, the EC’s order said AAP had fulfilled the requirement of being a recognised state party in four or more states.
Paragraph 6B states that a national party must get at least 6% vote share in four or more states in the last Lok Sabha or Assembly elections and have at least four MPs; or at least 2% of the seats in the Lok Sabha, with its candidates having been elected from at least three states.
Besides Delhi, Goa and Punjab, AAP became a state party in Gujarat after the 2022 Assembly elections where it secured 12.92% of the votes. Reacting to the development, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal tweeted in Hindi: “National party in such a short time? This is nothing less than a miracle. Many congratulations to all. Crores of people from the country have brought us here. People expect a lot from us. Today, people have given us this huge responsibility”.
The EC said the TMC had ceased to be a state party in Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh, though it continued to be a state party in West Bengal and Tripura, and was accorded state party status in Meghalaya on the basis of the 2023 elections.
In its review, the EC found the TMC did not contest the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur. In the most recent polls, the party got 48.02% of the votes in West Bengal (2021), and did not contest in Manipur (2022). A senior TMC leader who did not want to be named said: “We are exploring the legal options to challenge the decision.”
The NCP lost its state party status in Goa, Manipur and it remains a state party in Maharashtra, where it polled 16.71% of the votes in the 2019 Assembly elections. The party was also given state party status in Nagaland. When contacted, an NCP spokesperson said, “we will comment after studying the order”.
In the case of the CPI, the EC withdrew its status as a state party in West Bengal and Odisha, while it remains a state party in Kerala, Manipur and Tamil Nadu. During hearings, the CPI had argued that it had contested every election since 1952 and maintained a presence in Parliament. “The Commission finds no merit in the submission that the achievements and contribution made by CPI should be taken into consideration,” the EC order said.
Meanwhile, the EC also granted state party status to the Lok Janshakti Party in Nagaland, Voice of the People Party in Meghalaya, and Tipra Motha in Tripura, based on their recent poll performances.
Six others lost state party status — Peoples Democratic Alliance in Manipur, Pattali Makkal Katchi in Puducherry, Rashtriya Lok Dal in Uttar Pradesh, Bharat Rashtra Samithi in Andhra Pradesh, Revolutionary Socialist Party in West Bengal and Mizoram People’s Conference in Mizoram.
