India has two types of political parties - national parties and regional/state parties. All parties must register with the Election Commission of India and use official symbols for identification. India operates as a federal system with 28 states and 7 union territories. The largest state, Uttar Pradesh, has over 200 million inhabitants and would be the fifth most populous country if independent. Politics in India can be more corrupt and violent than in Western democracies, with assassinations of key leaders in the past. Communal, caste, and regional tensions continue to influence politics and threaten India's democratic principles at times.