- The Election Commission of India (ECI) in its report on enforcing the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) has stated that it expects star campaigners to lead by example and not vitiate the fabric of society. This has raised a debate about ECI’s powers to rein in MCC violations.
| Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RP Act) lays down the following requirements for registration of a political party with the ECI –Any political party that seeks registration should submit a copy of its memorandum/constitution. Such document should declare that the party shall bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of India. It should also bear allegiance to the principles of socialism, secularism and democracy, and uphold India’s sovereignty, unity and integrity. |
A registered party is referred to as a Registered Unrecognised Political Party (RUPP).
- Political parties are recognised as a ‘national’ or ‘State’ party under the provisions of The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968 (Symbols Order) by the ECI.
- The Representation of Peoples Act does not confer explicit powers on the ECI to de-register any political party if it fails to contest elections, conduct inner-party elections or lodge requisite returns.
| Registered political parties enjoy the following legal benefitsTax exemption for donations received under Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961.Common symbol for contesting general elections to the Lok Sabha/State AssembliesTwenty ‘star campaigners’ during an election campaign. As per the ECI, there are 2,790 active registered political parties in India. |
The Supreme Court in the Indian National Congress versus Institute of Social Welfare & Ors (2002) had held that the ECI does not have the power to de-register any political party under the Representation of Peoples Act.
- It may de-register only under exceptional circumstances like registration being obtained by fraud or the political party ceasing to have allegiance to the Constitution or if it is declared unlawful by the Government.
- Under Paragraph 16A of the Symbols order, the ECI has the power to suspend or withdraw recognition (National or state) of a recognised political party for its failure to observe MCC or follow lawful directions of the Commission.
- It has probably been used only once for three weeks in 2015 when the recognition of the National People’s Party was suspended for failure to follow the directions of the ECI.
Dig Deeper: Read about the powers of the Election Commission of India to take action against violators of the Model Code of Conduct.
