India Election 2024: A Look at the Key Political Parties in the Race

India is gearing up for the world’s largest democratic exercise as 969 million registered voters prepare to cast their ballots to elect 543 members of the Lok Sabha, India’s lower house of parliament. The elections will be held over seven phases starting on April 19.

With more than 2,500 political parties in the country, the competition is fierce. However, only 10 parties currently hold 86 percent of the seats in the Lok Sabha. Here is a look at some of the main parties vying for seats in this year’s election:

1. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): The incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP is claiming to be the world’s largest political organization with almost 180 million members. The party was founded in 1980 and has strong roots in the far-right Hindu nationalist organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

2. Indian National Congress: Congress is India’s oldest political party, dating back to 1885. The party has governed India for more than two-thirds of the years since independence in 1947. However, the party has struggled in recent years after Modi’s rise to power in 2014.

3. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP): The AAP emerged from an anti-corruption movement in 2011 and has been a prominent player in Delhi politics since 2015. The party is part of the opposition alliance named the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA).

4. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK): A strong regional force in India’s south, the DMK is the third-largest party in terms of seats held in the lower house of parliament.

5. All India Trinamool Congress (TMC): The TMC is the fourth-largest party by seats in parliament and holds power in West Bengal. The party’s founder, Mamata Banerjee, has been the head of West Bengal state for about 13 years.

As the election season kicks off, all eyes are on these parties as they battle it out for a chance to shape the future of India’s political landscape.