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The Election Commission of India (ECI) has initiated proceedings to delist another 476 Registered Unrecognised Political Parties (RUPPs) for failing to contest elections for six consecutive years.
This move is part of the ECI's ongoing efforts to clean up the electoral system and ensure that only active and engaged parties are registered. "As part of a comprehensive and continuous strategy of the Election Commission to clean up the electoral system, ECI has been conducting a nationwide exercise to identify and delist Registered Unrecognised Political Parties (RUPPs) that have failed to fulfil the essential condition of contesting even a single election for 6 years continuously, since 2019," ECI said on Monday. In the first round of this exercise, the ECI delisted 334 RUPPs on August 9, 2025, reducing the number of listed RUPPs from 2,854 to 2,520. "The Election Commission of India (ECI) has initiated proceedings to delist another 476 Registered Unrecognised Political Parties (RUPPs) for failing to contest elections for six consecutive years. This move is part of the ECI's ongoing efforts to clean up the electoral system and ensure that only active and engaged parties are registered," added ECI. Political Parties (National/State/RUPPs) in the country are registered with the ECI under the provisions of Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act 1951. Under provisions of the Act, any association once registered as a political party, gets certain privileges and advantages such as symbol, tax exemptions amongst others. Guidelines for registration of Political Parties mention that if the party does not contest elections continuously for 6 years, the party shall be taken off the list of registered parties. "As part of the second round of the exercise, another 476 RUPPs have been identified, which are from different States and UTs across the country," added ECI. The ECI has directed the Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of respective states and union territories to issue show-cause notices to the identified RUPPs, giving them an opportunity to respond and participate in a hearing. Based on the reports of the CEOs, the ECI will take a final decision regarding the delisting of these RUPPs. The ECI's objective behind this exercise is to maintain the integrity of the electoral system and prevent dormant parties from misusing the privileges and advantages granted to registered political parties. By delisting inactive parties, the ECI aims to promote transparency and accountability in the electoral process. (ANI)
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