jbp123/hello · Datasets at Hugging Face

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and execution of schemes for the welfare of the STs in the	state.	7. Appointment of a Commission to Investigate the
Conditions of BCs: The President may appoint a	commission to investigate the conditions of socially and	educationally backward classes and to recommend the
steps to improve their condition. The report of the	commission is to be placed before the Parliament, along with	action taken memorandum. Under the above provision, the
President has appointed two commissions so far. The first	backward classes commission was appointed in 1953 under	the chairmanship of Kaka Kalelkar. It submitted its report in
1955. But, no action was taken on it as the	recommendations were considered to be too vague and	impractical and also there was a sharp division among the
members on the criterion of backwardness.	The second Backward Classes Commission was	appointed in 1979 with B.P. Mandal as chairman. It
submitted its report in 1980. Its recommendations were also	lying unattended till 1990 when the V.P. Singh Government	declared reservation of 27 percent government jobs for the
OBCs.7	Table 68.1 Articles Related to Special Provisions for Certain	Classes at a Glance
Article No. Subject-matter	330 Reservation of seats for scheduled castes and	scheduled tribes in the House of the people
331 Representation of the Anglo-Indian community in	the House of the people	332 Reservation of seats for scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes in the legislative assemblies of	the states	333 Representation of the Anglo-Indian community in
cease after seventy years	335 Claims of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes	to services and posts
336 Special provision for Anglo-Indian community in	certain services	337 Special provision with respect to educational
grants for the benefit of Anglo-Indian community.	338 National Commission for scheduled castes	338A National Commission for scheduled tribes
338B National Commission for backward classes	339 Control of the Union over the administration of	scheduled areas and the welfare of scheduled
tribes	340 Appointment of a commission to investigate the	conditions of backward classes
341 Scheduled castes	342 Scheduled tribes	342A Socially and educationally backward classes
NOTES AND REFERENCES	1. These are the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order,	1950; the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) (Union
Territories) Order, 1951; the Constitution (Scheduled	Tribes) Order, 1950; the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes)	(Union Territories) Order, 1951 and so on. The
Parliament modified the Presidential orders by enacting	the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Orders	(Amendment) Act in 1956, in 1976 and in the
subsequent years.	2. The 102nd Amendment Act of 2018 inserted a new	Article 342A in the constitution.
1969 to thirty years, the 45th Amendment Act of 1980 to	forty years, the 62nd Amendment Act of 1989 to fifty	years, the 79th Amendment Act of 1999 to sixty years
and the 95th Amendment Act of 2009 to seventy years,	that is, until the year 2020.	3a. This information is downloaded from the website of the
Ministry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department).	4. M.P. Jain, Indian Constitutional Law, Wadhwa, Fourth	Edition, p. 756.
5. For complete details in this regard, see Chapters 47	and 48.	6. Clause 10 of Article 338 reads as follows: “In this article,
reference to the Scheduled Castes shall be construed	as including references to the Anglo-Indian community”.	7. For complete details in this regard, see ‘Mandal
PART-X	POLITICAL DYNAMICS	69. Political Parties
70. Role of Regional Parties	71. Elections	72. Election Laws
73. Electoral Reforms	74. Voting Behaviour	75. Coalition Government
76. Anti-Defection Law	77. Pressure Groups	78. National Integration
69 Political Parties	MEANING AND TYPES	Political parties are voluntary associations or organised groups of
individuals who share the same political views and who try to gain	political power through constitutional means and who desire to	work for promoting the national interest. There are four types of
political parties in the modern democratic states, viz., (i)	reactionary parties which cling to the old socio-economic and	political institutions; (ii) conservative parties which believe in the
status-quo; (iii) liberal parties which aim at reforming the existing	institutions; and (iv) radical parties which aim at establishing a	new order by overthrowing the existing institutions. In their
classification of political parties on the basis of ideologies, the	political scientists have placed the radical parties on the left and	the liberal parties in the centre and reactionary and conservative
parties on the right. In other words, they are described as the	leftist parties, centrist parties and the rightist parties. In India, the	CPI and CPM are the examples of leftist parties, the Congress of
centrist parties and the BJP is an example of rightist parties.	There are three kinds of party systems in the world, viz., (i) one	party system in which only one ruling party exists and no
opposition is permitted, as for example, in the former communist	countries like the USSR and other East European countries; (ii)	two-party system in which two major parties exists, as for
example, in USA and Britain1 ; and (iii) multi-party system in which	there are a number of political parties leading to the formation of	coalition governments, as for example, in France, Switzerland and
PARTY SYSTEM IN INDIA	The Indian party system has the following characteristic features:	Multi-Party System
The continental size of the country, the diversified character of	Indian society, the adoption of universal adult franchise, the	peculiar type of political process, and other factors have given rise
to a large number of political parties. In fact, India has the largest	number of political parties in the world. On the eve of seventeenth	Lok Sabha general elections (2019), there were 7 national parties,
52 state parties and 2354 registered - unrecognised parties in the	country2. Further, India has all categories of parties–left parties,	centrist parties, right parties, communal parties, non-communal
parties and so on. Consequently, the hung Parliaments, hung	assemblies and coalition governments have become a common	phenomena.
One-Dominant Party System	In spite of the multiparty system, the political scene in India was	dominated for a long period by the Congress. Hence, Rajni
Kothari, an eminent political analyst, preferred to call the Indian	party system as ‘one party dominance system’ or the ‘Congress	system’3. The dominant position enjoyed by the Congress has
been declining since 1967 with the rise of regional parties and	other national parties like Janata (1977), Janata Dal (1989) and	the BJP (1991) leading to the development of a competitive multi-
party system.	Lack of Clear Ideology	Except the BJP and the two communist parties (CPI and CPM), all
other parties do not have a clear-cut ideology. They (i.e., all other	parties) are ideologically closer to each other. They have a close	resemblance in their policies and programmes. Almost every party
than this, every party, including the so-called ideological parties, is	guided by only one consideration–power capture. Thus, politics	has become issuebased rather than the ideology and pragmatism
has replaced the commitment to the principles.	Personality Cult	Quite often, the parties are organised around an eminent leader
who becomes more important than the party and its ideology.	Parties are known by their leaders rather than by their manifesto.	It is a fact that the popularity of the Congress was mainly due to
the leadership of Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.	Similarly, the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu and TDP in Andhra Pradesh	got identified with MG Ramachandran and NT Rama Rao
respectively. Interestingly, several parties bear the name of their	leader like Biju Janata Dal, Lok Dal (A), Congress (I) and so on.	Hence, it is said that “there are political personalities rather than
political parties in India”.	Based on Traditional Factors	In the western countries, the political parties are formed on the
basis of socio-economic and political programme. On the other	hand, a large number of parties in India are formed on the basis of	religion, caste, language, culture, race and so on. For example,
Shiv Sena, Muslim League, Hindu Maha Sabha, Akali Dal, Muslim	Majlis, Bahujan Samaj Party, Republican Party of India, Gorkha	League and so on. These parties work for the promotion of
communal and sectional interests and thereby undermine the	general public interest.	Emergence of Regional Parties
Another significant feature of the Indian party system is the	emergence of a large number of regional parties and their growing	role. They have become the ruling parties in various states like
BJD in Orissa, DMK or AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, Akali Dal in	Punjab, AGP in Assam, National Conference in J&K, JD(U) in	Bihar and so on. In the beginning, they were confined to the
regional politics only. But, of late, they have come to play a	significant role in the national politics due to coalition governments	at the Centre. In the 1984 elections, the TDP emerged as the
largest opposition party in the Lok Sabha.	Factions and Defections	Factionalism, defections, splits, mergers, fragmentation,
polarisation and so on have been an important aspect of the	functioning of political parties in India. Lust for power and material	considerations have made the politicians to leave their party and
join another party or start a new party. The practice of defections	gained greater currency after the fourth general elections (1967).	This phenomenon caused political instability both at the Centre
and in the states and led to disintegration of the parties. Thus,	there are two Janata Dals, two TDPs, two DMKs, two Communist	Parties, two Congress, three Akali Dals, three Muslim Leagues
and so on.	Lack of Effective Opposition	An effective Opposition is very essential for the successful
operation of the parliamentary democracy prevalent in India. It	checks the autocratic tendencies of the ruling party and provides	an alternative government. However, in the last 50 years, an
effective, strong, organised and viable national Opposition could	never emerge except in flashes. The Opposition parties have no	unity and very often adopt mutually conflicting positions with
respect to the ruling party. They have failed to play a constructive	role in the functioning of the body politic and in the process of	nation building.
RECOGNITION OF NATIONAL AND STATE PARTIES	The Election Commission registers political parties for the purpose	of elections and grants them recognition as national or state
parties on the basis of their poll performance. The other parties	are simply declared as registered-unrecognised parties.	The recognition granted by the Commission to the parties
determines their right to certain privileges like allocation of the	party symbols, provision of time for political broadcasts on the	state-owned television and radio stations and access to electoral
rolls.	Further, the recognized parties need only one proposer for filing	the nomination. Also, these parties are allowed to have forty “star
campaigners” during the time of elections and the registered-	unrecognized parties are allowed to have twenty “star	campaigners”. The travel expenses of these star campaigners are
not included in the election expenditure of the candidates of their	parties.	Every national party is allotted a symbol exclusively reserved
for its use throughout the country. Similarly, every state party is	allotted a symbol exclusively reserved for its use in the state or	states in which it is so recognised. A registered-unrecognised
party, on the other hand, can select a symbol from a list of free	symbols. In other words, the Commission specifies certain	symbols as ‘reserved symbols’ which are meant for the
candidates set up by the recognised parties and others as ‘free	symbols’ which are meant for other candidates.	Conditions for Recognition as a National Party
At present (2019), a party is recognised as a national party if any	of the following conditions is fulfilled4 :	1. If it secures six per cent of valid votes polled in any four or
more states at a general election to the Lok Sabha or to the	legislative assembly; and, in addition, it wins four seats in	the Lok Sabha from any state or states; or
2. If it wins two per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha at a general	election; and these candidates are elected from three states;	or
3. If it is recognised as a state party in four states.	Conditions for Recognition as a State Party	At present (2019), a party is recognised as a state party in a state
if any of the following conditions is fulfilled5 :	1. If it secures six per cent of the valid votes polled in the state	at a general election to the legislative assembly of the state
concerned; and, in addition, it wins 2 seats in the assembly	of the state concerned; or	2. If it secures six per cent of the valid votes polled in the state
at a general election to the Lok Sabha from the state	concerned; and, in addition, it wins 1 seat in the Lok Sabha	from the state concerned; or
3. If it wins three per cent of seats in the legislative assembly at	a general election to the legislative assembly of the state	concerned or 3 seats in the assembly, whichever is more; or
4. If it wins 1 seat in the Lok Sabha for every 25 seats or any	fraction thereof allotted to the state at a general election to	the Lok Sabha from the state concerned; or
5. If it secures eight per cent of the total valid votes polled in	the state at a General Election to the Lok Sabha from the	state or to the legislative assembly of the state. This
condition was added in 2011.	The number of recognised parties keeps on changing on the	basis of their performance in the general elections. On the eve of
the seventeenth Lok Sabha general elections (2019), there were 7	national parties, 52 state parties and 2354 registered-	unrecognised parties in the country6. The national parties and
state parties are also known as all-India parties and regional	parties respectively.	Table 69.1 Recognised National Parties and State Parties (First
(Year) National Parties Parties	First (1952) 14 39	Second (1957) 4 11
Third (1962) 6 11	Fourth (1967) 7 14	Fifth (1971) 8 17
Sixth (1977) 5 15	Seventh (1980) 6 19	Eighth (1984) 7 19
Ninth (1989) 8 20	Tenth (1991) 9 28	Eleventh (1996) 8 30
Twelfth (1998) 7 30	Thirteenth (1999) 7 40	Fourteenth (2004) 6 36
Fifteenth (2009) 7 40	Sixteenth (2014) 6 47	Seventeenth (2019) 7 52
Table 69.2 Recognised National Parties and their Symbols (2019)	Sl. Name of the Party Symbol Reserved	No. (Abbreviation)
1. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Elephant*	2. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lotus	3. Communist Party of India (CPI) Ears of Corn and Sickle
4. Communist Party of India Hammer, Sickle and Star	(Marxist) (CPM)	5. Indian National Congress (INC) Hand

and execution of schemes for the welfare of the STs in the

state.

7. Appointment of a Commission to Investigate the

Conditions of BCs: The President may appoint a

commission to investigate the conditions of socially and

educationally backward classes and to recommend the

steps to improve their condition. The report of the

commission is to be placed before the Parliament, along with

action taken memorandum. Under the above provision, the

President has appointed two commissions so far. The first

backward classes commission was appointed in 1953 under

the chairmanship of Kaka Kalelkar. It submitted its report in

1955. But, no action was taken on it as the

recommendations were considered to be too vague and

impractical and also there was a sharp division among the

members on the criterion of backwardness.

The second Backward Classes Commission was

appointed in 1979 with B.P. Mandal as chairman. It

submitted its report in 1980. Its recommendations were also

lying unattended till 1990 when the V.P. Singh Government

declared reservation of 27 percent government jobs for the

OBCs.7

Table 68.1 Articles Related to Special Provisions for Certain

Classes at a Glance

Article No. Subject-matter

330 Reservation of seats for scheduled castes and

scheduled tribes in the House of the people

331 Representation of the Anglo-Indian community in

the House of the people

332 Reservation of seats for scheduled castes and

scheduled tribes in the legislative assemblies of

the states

333 Representation of the Anglo-Indian community in

cease after seventy years

335 Claims of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes

to services and posts

336 Special provision for Anglo-Indian community in

certain services

337 Special provision with respect to educational

grants for the benefit of Anglo-Indian community.

338 National Commission for scheduled castes

338A National Commission for scheduled tribes

338B National Commission for backward classes

339 Control of the Union over the administration of

scheduled areas and the welfare of scheduled

tribes

340 Appointment of a commission to investigate the

conditions of backward classes

341 Scheduled castes

342 Scheduled tribes

342A Socially and educationally backward classes

NOTES AND REFERENCES

1. These are the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order,

1950; the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) (Union

Territories) Order, 1951; the Constitution (Scheduled

Tribes) Order, 1950; the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes)

(Union Territories) Order, 1951 and so on. The

Parliament modified the Presidential orders by enacting

the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Orders

(Amendment) Act in 1956, in 1976 and in the

subsequent years.

2. The 102nd Amendment Act of 2018 inserted a new

Article 342A in the constitution.

1969 to thirty years, the 45th Amendment Act of 1980 to

forty years, the 62nd Amendment Act of 1989 to fifty

years, the 79th Amendment Act of 1999 to sixty years

and the 95th Amendment Act of 2009 to seventy years,

that is, until the year 2020.

3a. This information is downloaded from the website of the

Ministry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department).

4. M.P. Jain, Indian Constitutional Law, Wadhwa, Fourth

Edition, p. 756.

5. For complete details in this regard, see Chapters 47

and 48.

6. Clause 10 of Article 338 reads as follows: “In this article,

reference to the Scheduled Castes shall be construed

as including references to the Anglo-Indian community”.

7. For complete details in this regard, see ‘Mandal

PART-X

POLITICAL DYNAMICS

69. Political Parties

70. Role of Regional Parties

71. Elections

72. Election Laws

73. Electoral Reforms

74. Voting Behaviour

75. Coalition Government

76. Anti-Defection Law

77. Pressure Groups

78. National Integration

69 Political Parties

MEANING AND TYPES

Political parties are voluntary associations or organised groups of

individuals who share the same political views and who try to gain

political power through constitutional means and who desire to

work for promoting the national interest. There are four types of

political parties in the modern democratic states, viz., (i)

reactionary parties which cling to the old socio-economic and

political institutions; (ii) conservative parties which believe in the

status-quo; (iii) liberal parties which aim at reforming the existing

institutions; and (iv) radical parties which aim at establishing a

new order by overthrowing the existing institutions. In their

classification of political parties on the basis of ideologies, the

political scientists have placed the radical parties on the left and

the liberal parties in the centre and reactionary and conservative

parties on the right. In other words, they are described as the

leftist parties, centrist parties and the rightist parties. In India, the

CPI and CPM are the examples of leftist parties, the Congress of

centrist parties and the BJP is an example of rightist parties.

There are three kinds of party systems in the world, viz., (i) one

party system in which only one ruling party exists and no

opposition is permitted, as for example, in the former communist

countries like the USSR and other East European countries; (ii)

two-party system in which two major parties exists, as for

example, in USA and Britain1 ; and (iii) multi-party system in which

there are a number of political parties leading to the formation of

coalition governments, as for example, in France, Switzerland and

PARTY SYSTEM IN INDIA

The Indian party system has the following characteristic features:

Multi-Party System

The continental size of the country, the diversified character of

Indian society, the adoption of universal adult franchise, the

peculiar type of political process, and other factors have given rise

to a large number of political parties. In fact, India has the largest

number of political parties in the world. On the eve of seventeenth

Lok Sabha general elections (2019), there were 7 national parties,

52 state parties and 2354 registered - unrecognised parties in the

country2. Further, India has all categories of parties–left parties,

centrist parties, right parties, communal parties, non-communal

parties and so on. Consequently, the hung Parliaments, hung

assemblies and coalition governments have become a common

phenomena.

One-Dominant Party System

In spite of the multiparty system, the political scene in India was

dominated for a long period by the Congress. Hence, Rajni

Kothari, an eminent political analyst, preferred to call the Indian

party system as ‘one party dominance system’ or the ‘Congress

system’3. The dominant position enjoyed by the Congress has

been declining since 1967 with the rise of regional parties and

other national parties like Janata (1977), Janata Dal (1989) and

the BJP (1991) leading to the development of a competitive multi-

party system.

Lack of Clear Ideology

Except the BJP and the two communist parties (CPI and CPM), all

other parties do not have a clear-cut ideology. They (i.e., all other

parties) are ideologically closer to each other. They have a close

resemblance in their policies and programmes. Almost every party

than this, every party, including the so-called ideological parties, is

guided by only one consideration–power capture. Thus, politics

has become issuebased rather than the ideology and pragmatism

has replaced the commitment to the principles.

Personality Cult

Quite often, the parties are organised around an eminent leader

who becomes more important than the party and its ideology.

Parties are known by their leaders rather than by their manifesto.

It is a fact that the popularity of the Congress was mainly due to

the leadership of Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi.

Similarly, the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu and TDP in Andhra Pradesh

got identified with MG Ramachandran and NT Rama Rao

respectively. Interestingly, several parties bear the name of their

leader like Biju Janata Dal, Lok Dal (A), Congress (I) and so on.

Hence, it is said that “there are political personalities rather than

political parties in India”.

Based on Traditional Factors

In the western countries, the political parties are formed on the

basis of socio-economic and political programme. On the other

hand, a large number of parties in India are formed on the basis of

religion, caste, language, culture, race and so on. For example,

Shiv Sena, Muslim League, Hindu Maha Sabha, Akali Dal, Muslim

Majlis, Bahujan Samaj Party, Republican Party of India, Gorkha

League and so on. These parties work for the promotion of

communal and sectional interests and thereby undermine the

general public interest.

Emergence of Regional Parties

Another significant feature of the Indian party system is the

emergence of a large number of regional parties and their growing

role. They have become the ruling parties in various states like

BJD in Orissa, DMK or AIADMK in Tamil Nadu, Akali Dal in

Punjab, AGP in Assam, National Conference in J&K, JD(U) in

Bihar and so on. In the beginning, they were confined to the

regional politics only. But, of late, they have come to play a

significant role in the national politics due to coalition governments

at the Centre. In the 1984 elections, the TDP emerged as the

largest opposition party in the Lok Sabha.

Factions and Defections

Factionalism, defections, splits, mergers, fragmentation,

polarisation and so on have been an important aspect of the

functioning of political parties in India. Lust for power and material

considerations have made the politicians to leave their party and

join another party or start a new party. The practice of defections

gained greater currency after the fourth general elections (1967).

This phenomenon caused political instability both at the Centre

and in the states and led to disintegration of the parties. Thus,

there are two Janata Dals, two TDPs, two DMKs, two Communist

Parties, two Congress, three Akali Dals, three Muslim Leagues

and so on.

Lack of Effective Opposition

An effective Opposition is very essential for the successful

operation of the parliamentary democracy prevalent in India. It

checks the autocratic tendencies of the ruling party and provides

an alternative government. However, in the last 50 years, an

effective, strong, organised and viable national Opposition could

never emerge except in flashes. The Opposition parties have no

unity and very often adopt mutually conflicting positions with

respect to the ruling party. They have failed to play a constructive

role in the functioning of the body politic and in the process of

nation building.

RECOGNITION OF NATIONAL AND STATE PARTIES

The Election Commission registers political parties for the purpose

of elections and grants them recognition as national or state

parties on the basis of their poll performance. The other parties

are simply declared as registered-unrecognised parties.

The recognition granted by the Commission to the parties

determines their right to certain privileges like allocation of the

party symbols, provision of time for political broadcasts on the

state-owned television and radio stations and access to electoral

rolls.

Further, the recognized parties need only one proposer for filing

the nomination. Also, these parties are allowed to have forty “star

campaigners” during the time of elections and the registered-

unrecognized parties are allowed to have twenty “star

campaigners”. The travel expenses of these star campaigners are

not included in the election expenditure of the candidates of their

parties.

Every national party is allotted a symbol exclusively reserved

for its use throughout the country. Similarly, every state party is

allotted a symbol exclusively reserved for its use in the state or

states in which it is so recognised. A registered-unrecognised

party, on the other hand, can select a symbol from a list of free

symbols. In other words, the Commission specifies certain

symbols as ‘reserved symbols’ which are meant for the

candidates set up by the recognised parties and others as ‘free

symbols’ which are meant for other candidates.

Conditions for Recognition as a National Party

At present (2019), a party is recognised as a national party if any

of the following conditions is fulfilled4 :

1. If it secures six per cent of valid votes polled in any four or

more states at a general election to the Lok Sabha or to the

legislative assembly; and, in addition, it wins four seats in

the Lok Sabha from any state or states; or

2. If it wins two per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha at a general

election; and these candidates are elected from three states;

or

3. If it is recognised as a state party in four states.

Conditions for Recognition as a State Party

At present (2019), a party is recognised as a state party in a state

if any of the following conditions is fulfilled5 :

1. If it secures six per cent of the valid votes polled in the state

at a general election to the legislative assembly of the state

concerned; and, in addition, it wins 2 seats in the assembly

of the state concerned; or

2. If it secures six per cent of the valid votes polled in the state

at a general election to the Lok Sabha from the state

concerned; and, in addition, it wins 1 seat in the Lok Sabha

from the state concerned; or

3. If it wins three per cent of seats in the legislative assembly at

a general election to the legislative assembly of the state

concerned or 3 seats in the assembly, whichever is more; or

4. If it wins 1 seat in the Lok Sabha for every 25 seats or any

fraction thereof allotted to the state at a general election to

the Lok Sabha from the state concerned; or

5. If it secures eight per cent of the total valid votes polled in

the state at a General Election to the Lok Sabha from the

state or to the legislative assembly of the state. This

condition was added in 2011.

The number of recognised parties keeps on changing on the

basis of their performance in the general elections. On the eve of

the seventeenth Lok Sabha general elections (2019), there were 7

national parties, 52 state parties and 2354 registered-

unrecognised parties in the country6. The national parties and

state parties are also known as all-India parties and regional

parties respectively.

Table 69.1 Recognised National Parties and State Parties (First

(Year) National Parties Parties

First (1952) 14 39

Second (1957) 4 11

Third (1962) 6 11

Fourth (1967) 7 14

Fifth (1971) 8 17

Sixth (1977) 5 15

Seventh (1980) 6 19

Eighth (1984) 7 19

Ninth (1989) 8 20

Tenth (1991) 9 28

Eleventh (1996) 8 30

Twelfth (1998) 7 30

Thirteenth (1999) 7 40

Fourteenth (2004) 6 36

Fifteenth (2009) 7 40

Sixteenth (2014) 6 47

Seventeenth (2019) 7 52

Table 69.2 Recognised National Parties and their Symbols (2019)

Sl. Name of the Party Symbol Reserved

No. (Abbreviation)

1. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Elephant*

2. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lotus

3. Communist Party of India (CPI) Ears of Corn and Sickle

4. Communist Party of India Hammer, Sickle and Star

(Marxist) (CPM)

5. Indian National Congress (INC) Hand