• UGI USER
  • Sep 29, 2023
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Q. While the Election Commission of India (ECI) has the power to register political parties, it cannot de-register parties. Discuss the need to confer the power of de-registering political parties to the ECI.

 

Approach

● Briefly state the powers of the Election Commission of India (ECI) related to the registration of political parties.

● Discuss the need to confer the power of de-registering political parties to the ECI.

● Conclude accordingly. 

 

  • The Election Commission of India (ECI) is a Constitutional body tasked with the function of conducting free and fair elections in India. To this end, it accords recognition to political parties as national or state parties in accordance with the norms laid down in the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968.
  • The parties can register themselves with the ECI under Section 29 A of the Representation of the People Act (RPA), 1951. However, the Commission does not have the power to de-register the political parties. Recently, 111 Registered Unrecognised Political Parties (RUPPs) were found to be non-existent and violating the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

This has necessitated the need to usher long impending reforms to empower the ECI to de-register political parties, which indulge in following fraudulent, illegal and unethical practices, such as:

  • Misusing of tax exemptions: Section 13A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 gives 100% exemption to political parties on their income from house property, voluntary contributions, other sources and capital gains. This provision is often misused by political parties.
  • Involvement in money laundering and hawala transactions: Since political parties do not have to disclose income under various legislations, many RUPPs have the potential to be involved in money laundering and hawala activities and fuelling black economy in India.
  • Not active in elections: Many RUPPs do not take active participation in the electoral process. Further, a recent verification exercise conducted by the Election Commission found that 87 RUPPs were found to be non-existent.
  • Multi-fold increase in RUPPs: The ECI stated there are a total of 2,796 RUPPs as of September 2021, an increase of 300% from 694 RUPPs in 2001.
  • Lack of financial discipline: As per the ECI, 2,174 RUPPs have not submitted contribution reports, 2,056 have not furnished annual audited accounts, and 100 of them have failed to provide election expenditure statements.
  • In May, 2022, the ECI cracked the whip on 2,796 plus registered unrecognized political parties (RUPPs), delisting 87 of them, seeking action against 2,174 of them for failing to submit the required contribution report and putting over Rs. 1,000 crore of donations to such parties under scrutiny.

Given the rise in these cases, there is a need for an exclusive and comprehensive legal framework that empowers the ECI to de-register and derecognize political parties. The issue of deregistration of political parties has been taken up by the Commission in 1998, 2004, 2006, 2012 and 2015. In 2017, the Madras High Court requested the Centre to take an expeditious decision on the recommendation made by the Election Commission of India in 1998 to amend the Representation of People Act (RPA) so as to provide the Election Commission the power to deregister political parties that violate the Constitution of India. Going forward, appropriate changes should be made to empower the ECI in this regard.