Last Thursday, the Kerala High Court, in an interim order, stayed the Election Commission’s (EC’s) order removing four Kerala-based regional parties from the list of registered unrecognised political parties (RUPPs) and marked them as “delisted RUPPs”. The order was issued to “enable the candidates of these parties to contest in the ongoing local body elections”.
After a September 19 order from the EC delisted these four parties — Kerala Congress (Skaria Thomas), Socialist Republican Party, and two factions of the Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi — on the grounds that they had not contested any Lok Sabha or Assembly elections in the last six years, the regional outfits had approached the Kerala High Court challenging the EC’s move.
The four parties that got relief on Thursday include two factions of the Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi (JSS). While the JSS was founded by Communist veteran K R Gouriyamma after her ouster from the CPI(M) in 1994, its two factions are led by ex-MLA A N Rajan Babu and Gouriyamma’s niece Dr P C Beenakumari. The JSS later split with Babu’s faction aligning itself with the Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF).
The Socialist Republican Party, which was founded in 1974, was active in its early years but went dormant over the years. In the past decade though, it contested the Ernakulam seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls but finished in ninth place.
The fourth party involved is the Kerala Congress (Skaria Thomas), a splinter group of the larger Kerala Congress, which was founded in 1964. But in 2015, late Kerala Congress veteran Skaria Thomas quit to form his own faction, which is now allied with the ruling CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front. Thomas passed away in 2021.
As part of the EC’s nationwide delisting of inactive parties to “clean up” the electoral system, the poll agency noted that the parties designated as delisted RUPPs “were not participating in the electoral process”.
As per the guidelines for the registration of political parties issued by the EC under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1950: “At the time of registration with EC, a party should declare in its constitution that it must contest an election conducted by the EC within five years of its registration. If that party does not contest elections continuously for six years that party should be taken off the list of the registered parties.”
The EC found that a number of RUPPs were not taking part in the election process nor are they existent at their registered addresses. In two orders, on August 9 and September 19, the EC delisted 808 RUPPs, including 18 from Kerala and the four petitioners.
The EC said these parties were found “non-existent” at their registered offices and had not contested any election conducted since 2019. The state Chief Electoral Officer conducted enquiries and found that these parties were not complying with conditions prescribed at the time of their registration as a political party with the EC.
The purpose of registration with EC is participation in elections conducted by the poll body. Upon registration, a party gets several benefits including entitlement to accept contributions, income tax exemptions, the facility of common symbols, preference over Independent candidates on ballots, among others. After being delisted, these parties will no longer be entitled to these benefits.
While saying they intended to contest the forthcoming local body polls in the state, the four parties in question approached the Kerala High Court petitioning against the EC’s decision. The parties argued that since they have been contesting these local polls, including the last one held in December 2020, they are active political outfits in the state. While local body elections are administered by the State Election Commission, the EC oversees Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.
The parties argued they were delisted “without being heard” and that the delisting order was passed by the EC and not the Kerala CEO, which had conducted the enquiry and hearings on their electoral activity.
While granting interim relief to these parties, the Kerala HC said there was no provision in Section 29A of The Representation of the People Act for the cancellation of a party’s registration. The HC cited the text of Section 29A, which says “the Commission shall decide either to register the association or body as a political party… or not to register it.”
The court added the contention of the EC that it has the power to cancel the registration of parties under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968, is “unsustainable”.
The court listed the matter for further hearing on January 5, 2026, to consider the larger question as to whether the EC’s plenary powers are “boundless and beyond the purview of judicial review”.
