ASSIGNMENT

CLASS X

CHP: POLITICAL PARTIES

1. How we can define a political party? What are the components of a political party?

• A political party is a group of people who come together to contest elections and hold power in the
government.
• They agree on some policies and programs for the society with a view to promoting the collective
good.
• Parties reflect fundamental political divisions in a society. Parties are a part of the society and thus
involve PARTISANSHIP.
• A political party has three components:
• I) The leaders,
• II) The active members and
• III) The followers

2. Why do political parties involve partisanship?

• Political parties involve partisanship because they are part of the society and reflect the fundamental
political divisions in a society.
• They are known by the part they stand for, policies they support and interests of the society they uphold.

3. What are the functions of a political party?

• Basically, political parties fill political offices and exercise political power. Parties do so by performing
a series of functions:
• Parties contest elections. In most democracies, elections are fought mainly among the candidates put up
by political parties.
• Parties put forward different policies and programs and the voters choose from them.
• Parties play a decisive role in making laws for a country. Formally, laws are debated and passed in the
legislature.
• Parties form and run the government. The big policy decisions are taken by the political executive that
comes from the political parties.
• Those parties that lose in the elections play the role of opposition to the parties in power, by voicing
different views and criticizing the government for its failures or wrong policies.
• Parties shape public opinion. They raise and highlight issues. Parties have lakhs of members and
activists spread all over the country.
• Parties provide people access to government machinery and welfare schemes implemented by
governments.

4. Why do we need a political party?

• We need political parties because they perform many functions.(given above)

• The rise of political parties is directly linked to the emergence of representative democracies.
• Large scale societies need representative democracies.
• Political parties fulfill these needs that every representative government has.

5. What is one party system? Why one-party political system is not considered a good option in democratic
system?

• In some countries, only one party is allowed to control and run the government. These are called one-
party system. In China, only the Communist Party is allowed to rule.
• We cannot consider one party system as a good option because this is not a democratic option.
• Any democratic system must allow at least two parties to compete in the election and provide a fair
chance for the competing parties to come to the power
• One-party system is not considered a good option in democratic system because voters are not offered
any choice at the time of voting.

6. What is two- party system?

• In some countries, power usually changes between two main parties.

• But only the two main parties have a serious chance of winning the majority of seats to form the
government. Such a party system is called two-party system.

7. Describe any three main features of a two-party system.

• Three main features of a two-party system are as follows.

• Power usually changes between two parties, while other political parties may exist.
• The party that wins the majority forms the government, while the other forms the major opposition.
• Decision-making and implementation is prompt and quick.
• Such a system gives a strong and good opposition.

8. What is a multiparty system? Why has India adopted a multiparty system? Explain.

• A multiparty system is a political system in which several parties contest the election to hold political
power. In this system, there is a chance of two or more parties coming to power. This system also
advocates coalition government and alliance politics. India adopted a multiparty system because of the
following reasons.
• India is blessed with tremendous social and geographical diversity. This diversity cannot be easily
accommodated in one or two political parties.
• Because of multiparty system, variety of interests and opinions enjoy political representation.

9. ‘No party system is ideal for all countries and all situations.’ Justify the statement with arguments.

• No party system is ideal for all countries and all situations. This statement can be justified giving the
following arguments.
• A one-party system cannot be considered a good option because the voters do not have any choice and
it is not a democratic option.
• A two-party system cannot be considered ideal for a country because in this system, power usually shifts
from one party to the other. Several other parties with better programs and policies may exist, contest
elections and win a few seats, but only the two parties have serious chance of forming government.
• A multiparty system also cannot be considered a good option because it often appears messy and leads
to political instability. In this system the government is formed by various parties and ideologies coming
together which may further raise issues and conflicts.
10. What is meant by a national political party? State the conditions required to be a national political party.

• A national political party is a party that is present in several or all units of the federation. In other words,
it is a country-wide party. It has its units in various states. By and large, all these units follow the same
policies. The following are the conditions required for a party to become a national party.
• A party has to secure at least six per cent of total votes polled in the Lok Sabha elections or Assembly
elections in four states.
• It has to win at least four seats in the Lok Sabha to be recognized as a national party.

11. What is meant by a regional party? State the conditions required to be recognised as a regional political
party.

• A regional party, also called a state party, is a political party which takes care of regional concerns and
state’s interests only. It happens to have succeeded only in some states units of the federation.
• The following are the conditions required for a party to be recognised as a regional party.
• A party has to secure at least six per cent of the total votes polled in the election to the legislative
assembly of a state.
• It has to win at least two seats in the election to the legislative assembly of a state to be recognised as a
state or regional party.

12. How do state or regional political parties contribute in strengthening federalism and democracy in India?
Explain with examples.

• State and regional political parties contribute in strengthening federalism and democracy in India in the
following ways.
• They provide a variety of choice to people as each of them has different agendas and focus on different
issues.
• They provide a platform for different pressure and social groups, and communities to put forward their
demands.
• They help in power sharing by sharing power of government with the help of coalition government.

13. Name any six regional political parties of the four southern states of India.

• The four southern states with regional political parties are as follows.
• Kerala: Indian Federal Democratic Party and Kerala Congress (Mani)
• Tamil Nadu: All India Anna DMK and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
• Andhra Pradesh: Telegu Desam Party
• Karnataka: Janata Dal (Secular)

14. Name the regional political parties predominant in Punjab, Haryana and Uttarakhand respectively with
their symbols.

• The regional political parties predominant in:

• Punjab—Shiromani Akali Dal, symbol: scales
• Haryana—Indian National Lok Dal, symbol: a pair of spectacles
• Uttarakhand—Uttarakhand Kranti Dal, symbol: chair

15. Name the regional political parties predominant in Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Orissa, respectively with
their symbols.
• The regional political parties predominant in:
• Jharkhand—Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, symbol: bow and arrow
• Maharashtra—Shiv Sena, symbol: bow and arrow
• Orissa—Biju Janata Dal, symbol: conch

16. Name the regional political parties predominant in Sikkim, Nagaland and Manipur, respectively with
their symbols.

• The regional political parties predominant in:

• Sikkim—Sikkim Democratic Front, symbol: an umberlla
• Nagaland—Nagaland People’s Front, symbol: a cock
• Manipur—Manipur People’s Party, symbol: a cycle

17. Name any two regional parties of West Bengal.

Two regional parties of West Bengal are:

• Forward Bloc
• Trinamool Congress
• Revolutionary Socialist Party

18. ‘Lack of internal democracy within parties is the major challenge to political parties all over the world.’
Analyse the statement.

• Lack of internal democracy within political parties is a major challenge to political parties all over the
world. This statement can be analysed giving the following reasons.
• It is a tendency among political parties to concentrate power in the hands of one or few top leaders.
• Parties do not often keep membership registers and do not hold organisational meetings and do not
conduct internal elections regularly.
• Sufficient information on what happens inside the party is not provided to the ordinary members of the
party.
• In such a situation, personal loyalty to the leader becomes more important.

19. ‘Dynastic succession is one of the most serious challenges before the political parties.’ Analyse the
statement.

• The challenge of dynastic succession is undoubtedly one of the most serious challenges before the
political parties. The statement can be analysed giving the following arguments.
• Most parties do not practice open and transparent procedures; hence, there are very few opportunities for
an ordinary worker to rise to the top in a party.
• Top leaders favour people close to them or even their family members. In many parties, the top positions
are always controlled by members of one family.
• This is bad for democracy because people without sufficient experience or popular support are able to
enjoy positions of power.

20. How do money and muscle power play an important role in elections? Explain.

• Nowadays elections are focused mainly on winning at any cost so parties try to use short-cuts like
money and muscle power.
• They try to select or nominate those candidates who can raise money or provide muscle power.
 • Sometimes, wealthy people and big companies also get involved in the democratic politics for their own
interest and influence decision-making process.
• In many cases, candidates with criminal records, who can win elections, are supported.

21. Suggest and explain any five measures to reform political parties.

• The following reforms could be suggested in order to strengthen parties so that they perform their
functions well.
Regulation of party’s internal affairs:
• A law should be made to regulate the internal affairs of political parties. It should be made compulsory
for political parties to maintain a register of their members, to follow their own constitution, to have an
independent authority, etc.
State funding:
• There should be state funding of elections. The government should give money to parties to support
their election expenses to avoid corruption.
Pressure of public opinion:
• Political parties can be reformed if people put pressure on them. This can be done through petitions,
propaganda and agitations. Pressure groups and media play an important role in this.
Ban on political parties based on religion and caste:
• The Election Commission should ban the political parties which are formed on the basis of religion and
caste.
Ensure women participation:
• It should be made mandatory for all political parties to allot one-third of the tickets to women to ensure
their decisive voice in decision making. If the above-mentioned suggestions are taken into consideration,
it can be ensured that these could lead to some improvement in the working of the political parties.

22. Examine the institutional amendments made by different institutions to reform political parties and their
leaders.

• The following are the two institutional amendments made by different institutions to reform political
parties and their leaders.
Anti-defection law:
• The anti-defection law was passed to prevent elected MLAs and MPs from changing their parties. It was
seen that many MLAs and MPs were changing their parties for personal gains. Now, according to the
law, if any MLA or MP changes his/her party, his/her seat in the legislature will be lost. Also, MLAs
and MPs have to accept whatever the party leaders decide.
Affidavit:
• To reduce the influence of money and muscle power (criminals), an order has been passed by the
Supreme Court making it mandatory for every candidate contesting election to file an affidavit giving
details of his/her property and criminal records. This system has helped in making a lot of information
available to the public. But, we cannot say that this amendment has been successful as it cannot be said
that information provided by the candidates is true.
Mandatory organisational meeting and filing of ITR:
• An order has been passed by the Election Commission making it mandatory for political parties to hold
their organisational elections and file their income tax returns. The parties have started doing this, but
sometimes it is only a formality. It is not clear if this step has brought some reform or not.

23. ‘There are two other ways in which political parties can be reformed.’ Elaborate.

One, people can put pressure on political parties.

• This can be done through petitions, publicity and agitations.
 • Ordinary citizens, pressure groups and movements and the media can play an important role in this.
• If political parties feel that they would lose public support by not taking up reforms, they would become
more serious about reforms.
Two, political parties can improve if those who want this join political parties.
• The quality of democracy depends on the degree of public participation. It is difficult to reform politics
if ordinary citizens do not take part in it and simply criticise it from the outside.
• The problem bad politics can be solved by more and better politics.

24. ‘The fourth challenge is that very often parties do not seem to offer a meaningful choice to the voters.’
Explain.

• In order to offer meaningful choice, parties must be significantly different.

• In recent years there has been a decline in the ideological differences among parties in most parts of the
world.
• For example, the difference between the Labour Party and the Conservative Party in Britain is very
little.
• They agree on more fundamental aspects but differ only in details on how policies are to be framed
and implemented.
• In our country too, the differences among all the major parties on the economic policies have reduced.
• Those who want really different policies have no option available to them.
• Sometimes people cannot even elect very different leaders either, because the same set of leaders keep
shifting from one party to another.