AAP Now a National Party; Trinamool, Sharad Pawar’s NCP, CPI Lose Status
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has been granted the status of a national party by the Election Commission of India. The announcement was made on Friday, and with this, the AAP has become the fourth political party in India to be granted this status. The other three parties are the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Indian National Congress (INC), and the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M).
The AAP, which was formed in 2012, made its debut in the 2013 Delhi Assembly elections and won 28 of the 70 seats. In the 2015 Delhi Assembly elections, the party swept to power by winning 67 of the 70 seats. The party’s performance in the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections was equally impressive, as it won 62 of the 70 seats.
The criteria for being granted the status of a national party include winning at least 2% of the seats in the Lok Sabha from at least three different states in the latest general election, or winning at least 6% of the total votes in four or more states in the latest assembly elections. The AAP fulfilled the latter condition by winning more than 6% of the votes in the 2019 assembly elections in Delhi, Rajasthan, and Goa.
The granting of the national party status to the AAP will provide it with several advantages, including the right to contest elections in all states and the Union Territories, a reserved election symbol, and a minimum number of candidates in state assembly elections.
On the other hand, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and the CPI have lost their status as national parties. The TMC and the NCP failed to meet the criteria for retaining their status as national parties, while the CPI lost its status due to its poor performance in the recent elections.
The Trinamool Congress, which had won 34 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, failed to win enough seats in the recent assembly elections in West Bengal to retain its status as a national party. The party won 213 of the 292 seats in the West Bengal assembly elections, but it failed to win the required number of seats in the assembly elections held in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry.
Similarly, the NCP, which had won four seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, failed to win the required number of seats in the recent assembly elections to retain its status as a national party. The party won 58 seats in the Maharashtra assembly elections, but it failed to win the required number of seats in the assembly elections held in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and West Bengal.
The CPI, which had won two seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, failed to win any seats in the recent assembly elections held in Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, and Puducherry.
In conclusion, the granting of the national party status to the AAP is a significant development in Indian politics. It is a recognition of the party’s impressive performance in the recent assembly elections and its growing popularity across the country. The loss of national party status by the Trinamool Congress, the NCP, and the CPI is a setback for these parties, but it also highlights the importance of meeting the criteria for retaining the status of a national party. The decision of the Election Commission of India will have significant implications for the future of these parties and their role in Indian politics