By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 4 Aug: With Assembly elections due in 2027, the Election Commission has struck off 17 non‑recognised political parties from the registered list in Uttarakhand, barring them from contesting the next assembly polls due early next year. While BJP and Congress are already preparing for the electoral battle, the Chief Electoral Officer’s office has begun its own exercise of streamlining the process. Alongside the removals, six new parties have applied for registration. Independent MLA from Khanpur, Umesh Kumar has also formally registered his Jan Nirman Party with the Election Commission.
It may be recalled that, before every Assembly election, the Commission issues notices to the political outfits that have remained inactive for long periods and restricts them from contesting the upcoming elections. This time, 17 parties have been removed after being found inactive for the past six years without contesting any election. Investigations also revealed that the addresses registered by these parties are no longer valid. In 2022, Uttarakhand had 42 registered non‑recognised parties.
According to the CEO’s office, several of the delisted parties had failed to submit annual returns, contribution reports or conduct internal elections on time. Notices had been issued asking them to present their case and prove their existence, but no satisfactory response had been received. Consequently, the Commission forwarded a report to the Central Election Commission, which ordered their removal from the register.
The 17 parties barred from contesting include Bharatiya Jankranti Party, Hamari Janmanch Party, Maidani Kranti Dal, Rashtriya Jan Sahay Dal, Uttarakhand Jan Shakti Party, Bharatiya Mool Nivasi Samaj Party, Bharatiya Antyodaya Party, Bharatiya Gram Nagar Vikas Party, Gorkha Democratic Front, Rashtriya Gram Vikas Party, Bharat Kaumi Dal, Peoples Party, Bharat Parivar Party, Bharatiya Samrat Subhash Sena, Prajamandal Party, Prajatantra Party of India and Suraj Seva Dal.
The Commission has clarified that leaders associated with these parties cannot contest elections under the banner of these delisted outfits, while new applicants will be scrutinised as per procedure before being granted registration.
