Political parties of India

Unlike the USA and the UK, India adopted the multi-party system.
Every party in India has to register with the It offers some special facilities to the large and already established parties. Such parties are called 'recognised political parties' and they are given a unique symbol which can only be used by the official candidates of that part. There are 2858 registered parties, but only a handful of them are officially recognised.
This article will only list the political parties recognised by the Electoral Commission.
==National parties==
The criteria put forward by the Election Commission in order to be recognised as a national party are:-
*at least 6% of the total votes in Lok Sabha or Assembly elections in 4 (or more) states
*at least 4 seats in the Lok Sabha
According to this classification there were 7 recognised national parties in 2018
====Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)====
	
:Political position: Conservatism, Hindutva, Right-wing populism
:Color: ■ Saffron
:Alliance: NDA
:Description: Founded in 1980 by reviving the retired , formed by in 1951. Takes inspiration from India's ancient culture and ideas of integral humanism and Antyodaya. It has close links to the much older Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) party.
====Indian National Congress (INC)====
	
:Political position: Centrism, Secularism
:Color: ■ Sky blue (customary)
:Alliance: UPA
:Description: Founded in 1885, it is one of the oldest political parties of the world. It played a dominant role during pre- and post-Independent India under the leadership of but appears to be increasingly irrelevant today.https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/how-congress-went-from-388-seats-to-2-seats-in-uttar-pradesh/articleshow/89640246.cms It suffers from the dynastic politics of the Gandhi family, who control the party even today.
====Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)====
	
:Political position: 
:Color: ■ Pacific Blue
:Alliance: UPA
:Description: Formed in 1999 after a split in the Congress party.
====Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)====
	
:Political position: Social justice, Secularism
:Color: ■ Blue
:Alliance: 
:Description: Formed in 1984 under the leadership of Kanshi Ram. Seeks to represent and secure power for the marginalised bahujan samaj including dalits, adivasis, OBCs and religious minorities. Draws inspiration from the ideas and teachings of social reformers such as Ambedkar, etc.
==State parties==
The criteria put forward by the Election Commission in order to be recognised as a national party are:-
*at least 6% vote in the state Legislative Assembly
*at least 2 seats in the Legislative Assembly
Some of these parties are actually all-India parties but have only succeeded in some states, like the Samajwadi Party and Janta Dal have national level political organisation. Some parties are conscious about their state identity.
====Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)====
	
:Political position: Centrism, Populism,https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/southasia/2014/01/15/the-populist-politics-of-the-aam-aadmi-party/ No-core-ideology
:Color: ■ Blue
:Alliance: Federal Front
:Description: Founded in 2012 by Arvind Kejriwal after the popular } also led by him. Predominant in Delhi, India's capital, though it is close to becoming a national party after winning in Punjab and having influence in Goa and Chandigarh as well.
==Alliances==
Until BJP's arrival in 2014, no national party has ever been able to get a majority in the Lok Sabha. Hence, they are compelled to form alliances with numerous state parties.
====National Democratic Alliance (NDA)====
:Members: BJP
====United Progressive Alliance (UPA)====
:Members: INC, NCP
====Left Front====
:Members: CPI, CPI-M
====Federal Front====
:Members: AAP, AITMC
==External links==
* https://eci.gov.in/
==Notes==
==References==
Category:Lists of political parties
Category:Indian politics