Elections, Political Parties and Public Opinion
Elections questions test the Election Commission, the Representation of the People Acts, party recognition criteria and the Tenth Schedule; public opinion appears as a conceptual rather than numerical topic.
Election machinery
- Election Commission under Article 324; multi-member since 1993; the Chief Election Commissioner is removed like a Supreme Court judge.
- RPA 1950 deals with rolls and seat allocation; RPA 1951 with the conduct of elections and election petitions; qualifications in Articles 84 and 173, disqualifications in 102 and 191.
- Model Code of Conduct; EVMs with VVPAT; NOTA after PUCL v Union of India (2013); electoral bonds struck down in February 2024.
Parties and opinion
- Registration under Section 29A of the RPA; recognition as a State or national party by the Commission.
- National party: 6% of valid votes in four States plus four Lok Sabha seats, or 2% of Lok Sabha seats from three States, or recognition as a State party in four States.
- Tenth Schedule disqualifies defectors; pressure groups and public opinion shape manifestos and turnout.
Worked example: a party polls 7% in four States but wins only two Lok Sabha seats. It is not a national party, because the 6% vote condition must be combined with at least four Lok Sabha seats, and the alternative routes also fail.
Traps: NOTA does not force a re-election; an elected independent who later joins a party is treated as a defector; the ECI's recognition criteria are not in the Constitution.