The Union government has said that strict action will be initiated against the political parties which exist only on paper but enjoy tax exemptions.
Union Minister of State for Law and IT PP Choudhary today said that the government will examine the Election Commission’s decision to delist political parties which exist only on paper.
"Prime Minister Modi always wanted a transparent government and a transparent government process. There should not be any use of black money in the election process. If found that political parties are getting tax exemption in various ways then that is a fraud on the constitution and fraud on the institution. I believe that if someone is found doing this then strict action will be taken against them," he added.
The Election Commission is likely to write to the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) informing it about its decision to delist 200-odd political parties which exist only on paper.
The Election Commission has, over a period of time, identified various parties which have not contested polls since 2005 and has 'delisted' over 200 of them.
In the next few days, the Commission will send the list of the delisted parties to the income tax authorities seeking action against relevant laws if they are found to be involved in money laundering.
While the poll watchdog has the mandate to register a political party, it lacks power under electoral laws to deregister any party.
As its demand to get power to deregister a party is pending with the Law ministry, the Commission used its powers under Article 324 of the Constitution to delist parties for being dormant and not contesting elections for a long time.
There are over 1,780 registered, but unrecognised political parties in the country. Besides, there are seven national parties — Bharatiya Janata Party, Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party, Trinamool Congress, CPI, CPI(M) and Nationalist Congress Party — and 58 state parties.
