NEW DELHI: Two days after delisting 334 registered unrecognised political parties (RUPPs) over violation of its guidelines and other statutory obligations, the Election Commission has initiated proceedings to delist another 476 RUPPs on similar grounds.Having identified 476 RUPPs which may have defaulted on EC guidelines like contesting elections continuously for six years, or the conditions laid down under Section 29 of Representation of the People (RP) Act, 1951, such as keeping the commission apprised of any change in name, address or office-bearers and filing annual contribution reports, EC on Monday asked the chief electoral officers (CEOs) of the states/UTs concerned to issue show-cause notices to such RUPPs, giving them a fair chance to be heard. “Ensure that no party is unduly listed,” the poll body directed the CEOs.EC will take the final decision regarding the delisting of any RUPP based on the report of the CEO concerned.Section 29 of R P Act 1951 offers certain privileges and advantages, such as a symbol, tax exemptions, etc. to any association that’s registered as a political party.As part of a comprehensive strategy to clean up the electoral system, EC has been conducting a nationwide exercise to identify and delist RUPPs which have failed to fulfil the essential condition of contesting a single election for six years continuously, since 2019.The culmination of the first round of this exercise on Saturday saw EC delisting 334 RUPPs, bringing down the total number of listed RUPPs from 2,854 to 2,520.Among the 476 parties now facing delisting proceedings, the maximum are from Uttar Pradesh (121), Maharashtra (44), Tamil Nadu (42) and Delhi (41).
