Mumbai, August 4: A political party is a group of like-minded people coming together with the common goal of seeking to gain and maintain political power through elections and policy advocacy. A party generally banks on its workers for their success in elections. Thus, having a large cadre does make magic during polls. Currently, the Bhartiya Janata Party, the ruling party of India, holds the title of the World's largest political party. With over 180 million (18 crores) active members, as reported by The World Ranking, nobody stands near BJP. The BJP, founded in 1980, grew its membership almost five-fold between 2014 and 2019, during Narendra Modi’s first government under Amit Shah’s presidency.

Between 2014 and 2020, the BJP created a robust organisational structure of its own at the ground level. In its expansion, the saffron party left behind the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in 2015. The party currently enjoys the backing of loyal, or we could say, staunch supporters. Though critics argue that the party’s organisational growth is inconsequential, saying a vote-gathering machine that somehow comes into play only during election time. ADR Report on Wealth of Political Parties: BJP, Congress MLAs Have Assets Worth Rs 16,234 Crore and Rs 15,798 Crore Respectively.

At a distant second stands the Chinese Communist Party, with active members of around 98.04 million or 98 crores. The 100-year-old party held the tag of the World's largest party for a long time before it was dethroned by the BJP in 2015. The Communist Party of China was founded in 1921. Indian National Congress, or Congress, is in the third position with an active cadre of around 50 million. Founded in 1885, Congress had a major share in India's freedom movement. Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, along with its main rival, the Bharatiya Janata Party. With an active membership of around 10 million, Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is in the tenth spot of the World's largest political party. World GDP Growth Forecast: India to Become World's Second Largest Economy by 2075, Predicts IMF and Goldman Sachs; Check How Much US, China, Russia and Others' Economy Would Grow.

Two American giants, the Democratic Party and the Republican Party, hold the fourth and fifth spots regarding membership numbers. The Democratic Party boasts 47.13 million members, while the Republican Party has 36.01 million memberships. The other parties on the list include AIADMK, with 16 million members. Following closely, the AK Party (AKP) with 11.24 million members and the Prosperity Party with 11 million members. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) also holds a significant membership base of 10.05 million.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 04, 2023 06:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).