Discuss some positive and some negative …

Apart from the national parties, most of the major parties of the country are classified by the Election Commission of India as ‘state parties.' These are also referred to as regional parties. The following points explain the role of regional political parties in Indian politics

1. These parties need not always be regional in their ideology. Parties like All India Trinamool Congress, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Samajwadi Party, Samata Party, have a national level political organisation with units present in several states.
   Some parties like Mizo National Front and Biju Janata Dal, are conscious about their state identity.
2. Since 1996, there has been no national party that was able to secure on its own a majority in Indian Lok Sabha. The national parties have been compelled to form an alliance with the state parties to come to power. Thus, this has helped in the increase in the number and strength of the regional parties. This, in turn, has contributed to the federalism and democracy in our country being further strengthened.
3. This situation is applicable to state politics as well. If a party is unable to win the required number of seats in the Legislative Assembly, a coalition among a number of regional and/or national parties is the only option.
4. If a regional party has a stronghold in the centre, the region from which the party hails will automatically get a solid platform and again this could be detrimental to the conditions in the other states.
5. Regional parties play a vital role in Indian politics and their influence is important in the Central Government planning process and decisions, apart from their significance in particular region or state. In the 16th Lok Sabha election, Bharatiya Janata Party got an absolute majority which made the end of the era of Coalition Government in centre. This emphatic victory has re-opened the question of [alliance amongst regional parties in our country.