National party status: Election Commission to hear views of BSP, NCP, CPI

The Election Commission has called a meeting with BSP, NCP and CPI next week to hear their views on a show cause notice to withdraw their 'national party' status following their performance in the Lok Sabha elections.

"The Election Commission has informed that among the national parties, the recognition of BSP, CPI and NCP are under review process based on their poll performance, as these parties have not fulfilled the conditions for retaining recognition as national parties," Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad informed the Lok Sabha.

In a written reply, he said the EC has given the three parties hearing opportunity on August 19. "After hearing, appropriate orders will be passed in this regard," he said. Following their poor performance, EC had issued show cause notices to Bahujan Samaj Party, Nationalist Congress Party and Communist Party of India asking them why their national party status should not be withdrawn.

Besides the three, Congress, CPI-M and BJP are the other three 'national parties'. A political party becomes eligible to be recognised as a national party if it has won 2 per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha (11 seats) from at least three different states in the latest general election.

Also, if the party has polled 6 per cent of the total valid votes in Lok Sabha and assembly polls in at least four states, in addition to winning four Lok Sabha seats. While the BSP bagged a 4.1 per cent vote share — the third highest after the BJP and the Congress — it failed to secure a single Lok Sabha seat. The NCP, with a vote share of 1.6 per cent, won six Lok Sabha seats. With a 0.8 per cent vote-share, the CPI managed to win one seat in the 2014 polls.