India’s Election Commission has recently recognized the National People’s Party (NPP) as the country’s eighth national party. This accolade underscores NPP’s distinction as the first regional party from North-East India to have been accorded such a status.
The NPP received this recognition as it met several conditions during the general election for the Legislative Assembly of Arunachal. The party polled an impressive 14.55% of the valid votes, significantly surpassing the required minimum of 6%. Additionally, NPP secured five out of the sixty seats in Arunachal Pradesh’s Legislative Assembly. Based on these achievements, the party met the requirements for being acknowledged as a State Party in Arunachal Pradesh.
Upon being recognized as a State party in Arunachal Pradesh, the NPP has now become a recognized State party in four states: Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh. Consequently, the party fulfilled the eligibility criteria to be acknowledged as a National Party. The symbol “Book” has been allotted to the National People’s Party upon their request.
Overview of National Parties in India
Before the inclusion of the NPP, there were seven national parties in India. The Trinamool Congress achieved this status most recently in September 2016, under the leadership of West Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee.
Founded in 2013 by the late Purno Agitok Sangma, father of the current Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, the National People’s Party has come a long way in shaping the political landscape of North-East India.
Facts Regarding Indian Political Parties
| Name of the Party (Abbreviation) | Symbol Reserved |
|---|---|
| Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) | Elephant (In all States/U.T.s except in Assam) |
| Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) | Lotus |
| Communist Party of India (CPI) | Ears of Corn and Sickle |
| Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM) | Hammer, Sickle and Star |
| Indian National Congress (INC) | Hand |
| Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) | Clock |
| All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) | Flowers and Grass |
| National People’s Party (NPP) | Book |
Recognition of National and State Parties
The Election Commission registers political parties for election purposes and grants them recognition as national or state parties based on their poll performance. Recognized parties are granted certain privileges, including party symbols allocation, time provision for political broadcasts on state-owned television and radio stations, access to electoral rolls, and needing only one proposer for nomination filing.
These privileges extend to the permitted number of star campaigners during elections – forty for recognized parties and twenty for registered–unrecognized parties. The travel expenses of these campaigners are not included in their parties’ election expenditure. Every national party is assigned a symbol reserved for its exclusive use throughout the country. State parties receive similar treatment within the states they’re recognized.
Conditions for Recognition as a National Party
A party can be recognized as a national party if it meets any of the following criteria:
– It secures six per cent of valid votes polled in any four or more states in a general election.
– And, it wins four Lok Sabha seats from any state or states;
– Or, it wins two per cent of Lok Sabha seats in a general election, and these candidates are elected from three states;
– Or, it is recognised as a state party in four states.
Conditions for Recognition as a State Party
A party can achieve state party status if:
– It secures 6% of the valid votes polled in the state in a general election to the legislative assembly of the concerned state and wins 2 seats in the assembly;
– Or, it secures 6% of valid votes in the state in a general election to the Lok Sabha and wins one seat from the concerned state;
– Or, it wins 3% of seats or at least 3 seats in the legislative assembly in a general election in the concerned state;
– Or, it wins 1 Lok Sabha seat for every 25 seats or any fraction thereof allotted to the state in a general election;
– Or, it secures 8% of total valid votes in the state in a General Election to the Lok Sabha or the legislative assembly of the state. This last condition was added in 2011.
