CBSE Class 10 Social Science Political Parties VBQs

Summary

A party that secures at least 6 per cent of the total votes in Lok Sabha elections or Assembly Elections in four States and wins at least four seats in the Lok Sabha, is recognised as a ‘National party’. 

A party, that secures at least 6 per cent of the total votes in an election to the Legislative Assembly of a State and wins at least two seats, is recognized as a ‘State party’. 

Tabulate four national parties and four regional parties of India.

National Parties:
Indian National Congress; BJP (Bharatiya Janta Party); CPI (Communist Party of India); CPI (M) (Communist Party of India —Marxist).

Regional Parties:
Akali Dal (Punjab); DMK (Tamil Nadu); RJD (Rashtriya Janta Dal) (Bihar); Shiv Sena (Maharashtra). 

Components of a political party are: 

• ¶ The leaders,
• ¶ Active members and
• ¶ The followers.
•  

Partisanship:
A partisan is a person who is strongly committed to a party, group or faction. As parties (political) are about a part of the society, they involve ‘partisanship’. 

Role of an opposition party:
Opposition parties mobilize opposition to the government. It puts forward its own views in Parliament and criticizes the government for its failures. By doing this, it keeps a check on the ruling party. 

Source of inspiration of Bharatiya Janata Party:
The source of inspiration of Bharatiya Janata Party is the ancient Indian culture and values. Cultural nationalism (Hindutva) is an important element in its conception of Indian nationhood and politics. 

Source of inspiration of Bahujan Samaj Party:
The Bahujan Samaj Party draws inspiration from the ideas and teachings of Sahu Maharaj, Mahatma Phule, Periyar Ramaswami Naicker and Babasaheb Ambedkar. It stands for the interest and welfare of the dalits and other oppressed people. 

Ideology of Indian National Congress:
Under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru, the Indian National Congress sought to build a modem secular democratic republic in India. The party propagates secularism and welfare of the weaker sections and minorities of society. It supports new economic reforms but with a human face. 

There are three kinds of party systems as given below: 

1. One-party system. In some countries only one party is allowed to control and run the government. For example, in China only the Communist Party is allowed to rule.
2. Two-party system. In this system, several parties may exist, contest the elections and win a few seats in the national legislatures. But only two main parties have a serious chance of winning majority of seats to form government. For example, The USA and the UK.
3. Multi-party system. In this system, the government is formed by various parties coming together in a coalition. When several parties in a multi-party system join hands for the purpose of contesting elections and winning power, it is called an alliance or a front.
   For example, in India there were three major alliances in 2004 parliamentary elections—the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and the Left Front. This system on one hand leads to political instability but at the same time, allows for a variety of interests and opinions to enjoy political representation. 

Efforts to reform political parties are: 

1. The Constitution has been amended to prevent elected MLAs and MPs from changing parties. Now if any elected MLA or MP changes his party, he/she will lose his/her seat in the Legislative Assembly or Parliament. This amended law has helped to bring down the number of defections.
2. The Supreme Court has passed an order to reduce the influence of money and criminals. Now it has become mandatory for every candidate, who contests election, to file an affidavit giving details of his assets and criminal cases pending against him. This has helped in making this information available to the public.
3. The Election Commission has passed an order making it necessary for political parties to hold their organisational elections and file their Income-tax Returns. 

Role of money and muscle power grows during elections:
Since focus of the parties is on winning elections, they use short-cuts to win the elections. They nominate candidates who have or can raise lot of money. In some cases, parties support criminals who can win elections. Thus the role of rich people and big companies in the democratic process has been a cause of worry. 

Dynastic succession:
Most political parties do not practice open and transparent procedures for their functioning. So there are very few ways for an ordinary worker to rise to the top in a party. Those who happen to be the leaders are in a position of unfair advantage as they favor people close to them or even their family members.
In many parties, the top positions are always controlled by members of a particular family, which is unfair to other members of the party, and bad for democracy. 

Functions of Political Party: 
¶  Contesting Elections. Political parties contest elections.
¶  Policies. Political parties put forward different policies and programmes so that the voters can choose from them. The policies and programmes of the Ruling Party are expected to be followed by the government.
¶  Making Law. Political parties play a decisive role in making laws for the country.
¶  Formation of Government. Political parties form and run governments. The executive body is formed by people from the ruling party.
¶  Playing Opposition. A party which does not get majority or come under the majority coalition, needs to play the role of opposition.
¶  Shaping Public Opinion. Political parties shape public opinion. They do so by raising and highlighting issues in the legislature and in the media.
¶  Providing Access to Government Machinery. Political parties provide people access to government machinery and welfare schemes implemented by governments. 

MCQ Questions for Class 10 Social Science Political Parties

Question : Which one of the following countries has one party system?
(a) China
(b) Indo-China
(c) Japan
(d) Germany
Answer : A

Question : What is the political party that runs government known as ?
(a) Ruling party
(b) Pressure Group
(c) Opposition party
(d) None of these
Answer : A

Question : Arrange the followings in correct sequence according to the formation year :
(i) Bhartiya Janata Party
(ii) Congress
(iii) Bahujan Samaj Party
(iv) Communist Party of India
Options-
(a) (i)-(ii)-(iii)-(iv)
(b) (ii)-(i)-(iii)-(iv)
(c) (ii)-(iv)-(i)-(iii)
(d) (i)-(iii)-(ii)-(iv)
Answer : C

Question : To whom do political parties should register them for contesting the elections ?
(a) State government
(b) Central government
(c) Election Commission
(d) None of these
Answer : C 

Question : What is the guiding philosophy of the Bharatiya Janata Party?
(a) Bahujan Samaj
(b) Revolutionary democracy
(c) Integral humanism
(d) Modernity
Answer : D

Question : Which one of the following regional parties is associated with West Bengal?
(a) Lok Jan Shakti Party
(b) Janata Dal
(c) Forward Bloc
(d) Democratic Front 
Answer : C 

Question : What does defection mean?
(a) Leaving all the parties
(b) Moving of a person from one party to another party for some personal benefit
(c) Moving of a person from opposition party to ruling party
(d) Moving of a person from ruling party to opposition party 
Answer : B 

Question : Which is the most visible institution of democracy?
(a) Elections
(b) Political parties
(c) Adult Franchise
(d) Seats reservation 
Answer : A 

Question : One of the following political parties is a state party ......... .
(a) Bharatiya Janata Party
(b) Nationalist Congress Party
(c) Samata Party
(d) Bahujan Samaj Party 
Answer : C 

Question : Which political party supports the concept of Hindutva?
(a) Communist Party of India (Marxist)
(b) Congress Party
(c) Bharatiya Janata Party
(d) Telugu Desam party 
Answer : C 

Question : The Indian National Congress was founded in the year
(a) 1800
(b) 1890
(c) 1899
(d) 1885 
Answer : D

Question : Which party was formed under the leadership of Kanshi Ram ?
(a) DMK
(b) BSP
(c) CPI (M)
(d) Congress
Answer : B

Question : What is the system of two parties known as ?
(a) Uni-party system
(b) Multi-party system
(c) Bi-party system
(d) None of these
Answer : C

Question : Who is a ‘Partisan’ ?
(a) Disloyal party member
(b) Ex-party member
(c) Estranged party member
(d) None of these
Answer : A

Question : Which of these is a National Party ?
(a) INC
(b) BJP
(c) BSP
(d) All of these
Answer : D

True / False

Question : Bharatiya Janata Party came into power at the centre in 2000. (True/False)
Answer : False

Question : Regional parties in recent times have actively participated in the formation of the government at the Centre. (True/False)
Answer : True

Question : Every party in the country need not register with the Election Commission of India. (True/False)
Answer : False

Assertion and Reasoning Based Questions

Mark the option which is most suitable :
(a) If both assertion and reason are true and reason is the correct explanation of assertion.
(b) If both assertion and reason are true but reason is not the correct explanation of assertion.
(c) If assertion is true and reason is false.
(d) If both assertion and reason are false.

Question : Assertion : The multi-party system tends to be extremely messy and mostly leads to political instability.
Reason : Multi-party systems give rise to coalitions which can break at any moment over smallest difference of opinion.
Answer : (a) In a democracy like India, having a multi-party system leading to coalitions is very common. It can be so that one party who lends support to the Centre may not agree with them, thus breaking away and collapsing the government.

Question : Assertion : One party system is a democratic system.
Reason : It is because elections are held on a regular basis.
Answer : (d) In a democracy, at least two parties are required to contest elections to make it inclusive of all points of views.

Read the sources given below and answer the questions that follows :
Source A – Why do we need political parties ? Political parties are easily one of the most visible institutions in a democracy. For most ordinary citizens, democracy is equal to political parties. If you travel to remote parts of our country and speak to the less educated citizens, you could come across people who may not know anything about our Constitution or about the nature of our government. But chances are that they would know something about our political parties.
Source B – Meaning 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 programmes for the society with a view to promote the collective good. Since, there can be different views on what is good for all, parties try to persuade people why their policies are better than others. They seek to implement these policies by winning popular support through elections. Source C – Functions Basically, political parties fill political offices and exercise political power. Parties do so by performing a series of functions.
Source A – Why do we need political parties ?

Question :  What have parties become identified with?
Answer : Political parties have become identified with social and political divisions.
Source B – Meaning

Question :  Name the three components of a political party.
Answer : The three components of a political party are the leaders, the active members, and the followers. Source C – Functions

Question :  Give any one function of a political party.
Answer : Parties form and run governments. The big policy decisions are taken by political executive that comes from the political parties. Parties recruit leaders, train them and then make them ministers to run the government in the way they want.

Read the source given below and answer the following questions.

Democracies that follow a federal system all over
the world tend to have two kinds of political parties:
parties that are present in only one of the federal units and parties that are present in several or all units of the federation. This is the case in India as well. There are some countrywide parties, which are called ‘national  parties’. These parties have their units in various states.
But by and large, all these units follow the same policies, programmes and strategy that is decided at the national level. Every party in the country has to register with the Election Commission.While the Commission treats all parties equally, it offers some special facilities to large and established parties. These parties are given a unique symbol – only the official candidates of that party can use that election symbol. Parties that get this privilege and some other special facilities are ‘recognised’ by the Election Commission for this purpose. That is why these parties are called, ‘recognised political parties’.The Election Commission has laid down detailed criteria of the proportion of votes and seats that a party must get in order to be a recognised party. A party that secures at least six per cent of the total votes in an election to the Legislative Assembly of a State and wins at least two seats is recognised as a State party. A party that secures at least six per cent of the total votes in Lok Sabha elections or Assembly elections in four States and wins at least four seats in the Lok Sabha is recognized as a national party.

Answer the following MCQs by choosing the most appropriate option:

Question :  Which one of the following party is considerd as national party?
(a) Janata Dal
(b) Bahujan Samaj Party
(c) Samata Party
(d) All of the above

Answer : (b) Bahujan Samaj Party

Question : A party that secures at least six per cent of the total votes in an election to the Legislative Assembly of a State and wins at least two seats is recognised as a_________
(a) National Party
(b) State Party
(c) Local Party
(d) All of them

Answer : (b) State Party

Question : How many parties are classified as national party in India?
(a) 2
(b) 5
(c) 7
(d) 9

Answer : (c) 7

Question : A party has to secure at least _________ seats in the Lok Sabha ,to become a national party?
(a) 2
(b) 3
(c) 4
(d) 5

Answer : (c) 4

Very Short Questions for Class 10 Social Science Political Parties

Question : How many parties are registered with the Election Commission of India?
Answer :  More than 750 parties are registered with the Election Commission of India.

Question : What is a major drawback of the multi-party system?
Answer :  The multi-party system often appears very messy and leads to political instability.

Question : Mention any two functions of a political party.
Answer :  (i) It contests elections.
(ii) It puts forward different policies and programmes and the voters choose from then.

Question. ------------ is the recently recognised National party of India.
Answer : National People’s Party.

Question. Name any 2 state parties in India.
Answer : Biju Janata Dal,Sikkim Democratic Front.

Question. Universal Adult Suffrage stands for Right to -----------------
Answer : Right to Vote.

Question. Name the political party that seeks to represent and secure power for Dalits,OBC,Adivasis and religious minorities?
Answer : Bahujan Samaj Party.

Question. Give 2 countries with two party system.
Answer : USA and UK

Question. What are the 3 components of a political party?
Answer : The leaders,the active members and the followers.

Question. State the meaning of Partisan
Answer : A person who is strongly committed to a party,group or faction.

Question. State any one function of political party.
Answer : Parties contest elections,Parties putforward different policies and programmes,Parties play a decisive role in making laws for a country(any 1)

Question : Why do parties sometimes launch movements?
Answer :  Parties sometimes launch movements for the resolution of problems faced by people.

Question : What is the principal concern of Bahujan Samaj Party?
Answer :  This party’s principal concern is to secure the interest and welfare of the dalits and oppressed people. 

Question : Name the Authority to certify Indian and foreign films in India 
Answer :  Central Board film certification

Question : Name the three components of a political party.
Answer : (i) Leaders (ii) Active members (iii) Followers

Question : What is called an alliance or a front?
Answer : When several parties in a multi-party system join hands for the purpose of contesting elections and winning power it is called an alliance or a front.

Question : What is a major drawback of the multi-party system?
Answer : The multi-party system often appears very messy and leads to political instability.

Question : How can people put pressure on political parties?
Answer : They can do this through petitions, publicity and agitations.

Question : When is it difficult to reform politics?
Answer : It is difficult to reform politics if ordinary citizens do not take part in it and simply criticise it from the outside.

Question : India has evolved a multi-party system. What is the reason behind it?
Answer : It is because the social and geographical diversity in such a large country is not easily absorbed by two or even three parties.

Question : Which party is allowed to rule in China?
Answer : The communist party is allowed to rule in China.

Question : Although people in China are legally free to form political parties, it does not happen. Why?
Answer : It is because the electoral system does not permit free competition for power.

Question : How is the government formed in a multi-party system?
Answer : In a multi-party system, the government is formed by various parties coming together in a coalition.

Question : What are called ‘recognised political parties’?
Answer : Parties that get some special facilities from the Election Commission are called ‘recognised political parties’.

Question : Democracies that follows a federal system all over the world tend to have two kinds of political parties. Which are they?
Answer : (i) Parties that are present in only one of the federal units.
(ii) Parties that are present in several or all units of the federation.

Question : What are called ‘national parties’?
Answer : There are some countrywide parties, which are called national parties. These parties have their units in various states. These units follow the same policies, programmes and strategy that are decided at the national level.

Question : Which party is recognised as a national party?
Answer : A party that secures at least six per cent of the total votes in Lok Sabha elections or Assembly elections in four states and wins at least four seats in the Lok Sabha is recognised as a national party.

Question : What is the principal concern of Bahujan Samaj Party?
Answer : This party’s principal concern is to secure the interest and welfare of the dalits and oppressed people.

Question : What has the supreme court done to reduce the influence of money and criminals in politics?
Answer : The Supreme Court has made it mandatory for every candidate who contests elections to file affidavit giving details of his property and criminal cases pending against him/her.

Question : Name the two countries where we see two party system.
Answer : (i) The United States of America
(ii) The United Kingdom

Question : Which party is recognised as a state party?
Answer : A party that secures at least six per cent of the total votes in an election to the Legislative Assembly of a state and wins at least two seats is recognised as a state party.

Question : Who chooses the candidate for contesting elections in India?
Answer : Top party leaders.

Question : USA has _______________.
Answer : Two party system.

Question : Which political party is famous in Great Britain?
Answer : Labour Party

Question : How many parties are registered with the election commission of India?
Answer : More than 750 parties.

Question : Write two components of political party.
Answer : (i) Leaders (ii) Active Members.

Question : Analyse the three components of a political party.
Answer :  Three components of a political party are :
(i) Leaders
(ii) Active members
(iii) Followers

Question : Name the national political party which espouses secularism and welfare of weaker section and minorities. Mention any four features of that party.
Answer :  The national political party which espouses secularism and welfare of weaker sections and minorities is the Indian National Congress.
Four features of this party are listed below :
(i) Founded in 1885.
(ii) Dominated Indian politics, both at the national and state levels, for several decades after India’s independence.
(iii) Ruling party at the centre till 1977 and then from 1980 to 1989. After 1989, its support base declined.
(iv) A centrist party (neither rightist nor leftist) in its ideological orientation.

Question : How do state or regional political parties contribute in strengthening federalism and democracy in India? Explain with examples.
Answer :  The state and regional political parties strengthen federalism in following ways:
They provide variety of choice to people as they each have different agendas and focus on issues more relevant to their regions.
They provide a platform for different pressure and social groups and communities to put forward their demands. They make the parliament diverse by sharing power of government by helping to form a coalition government.
For example in 2014 election the UPA was formed by Nationalist Congress party (NCP), Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) etc.

Question : Name the ‘regional political parties’ that are predominant in Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Odisha respectively with their symbols.
Answer :  Jharkhand–JMM–Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (Bow and Arrow)
Maharasthra–INC–Indian National Congress
Odisha–BJD–Biju Janata Dal. (Conch)

Question : Give an assessment of two-party system with examples.
Answer :  In some countries power usually changes between two major parties. Several other parties exist, contest elections and win a few seats in the legislature. But only two main parties have a serious chance of winning and forming government. For example, countries like U.K., Canada, England and U.S. follow two-party system. In this type of party system the winning party forms the government and the other party forms the opposition.

Question : Why can’t modern democracies exist without political parties? Explain any three reason.
Answer :  (i) We cannot think modern democracies without political parties. In case there are no political parties every candidate in the elections will be independent, no one will be able to make any promises to the people about any major policy changes. The government may be formed, but its utility will remain ever uncertain.
(ii) Elected representatives will be accountable to their constituency for what they do in the locality. But, no one will be responsible for how the country will run. Just look at the non-party based elections to the Panchayats in many states. Although, the parties do not contest formally, it is generally noticed that the village gets split into more than one faction, each of which puts up a ‘panel’ of its candidates. This is why we find political parties in almost all countries of the world.
(iii) Political parties agree on policies and programmes to promote collective good and influence people to know why their policy is better than others. They try to implement the policies by winning popular support through elections. They reflect fundamental division in a society.

Question : Name any two challenges to political parties?
Answer :  (i) Lack of internal democracy
(ii) Growing role of money and muscle power in parties, especially during elections.

Question : What is a multi-party system? Write a note on multi-party system in the context of India.
Answer : If several parties compete for power, and more than two parties have a reasonable chance of coming to power either on their own strength or in an alliance with others, it is known as a multi-party system.
In India, we have a multi-party system. In this system, the government is formed by various parties coming together in a coalition. When several parties in a multiparty system join hands for the purpose of contesting elections and winning power, it is called an alliance or a front. For example, in India there were three such major alliances in 2004 parliamentary elections—the National Democratic Alliance, the United Progressive Alliance and the Left Front.

Question : “Lack of internal democracy within parties is the major challenge to political parties all over the world.” Analyse the statement.
Answer : All over the world there is a tendency in polticial parties towards the concentration of power in one or few leaders at the top. Parties do not keep membership registers, do not hold organisational meetings, and do not conduct internal elections regularly. Ordinary members of the party do not get sufficient information on what happens inside the party. They do not have the means or the concessions needed to influence the decisions. As a result the leaders assume greater power to make decisions in the name of the party. Since one or few leaders exercise paramount power in the party, those who disagree with the leadership find it difficult to continue in the party. More than loyalty to party principles and policies, personal loyalty to the leader becomes more important.

Question : Write a short note on one-party system.
Answer : In some countries only one party is allowed to control and run the government. These are called one party system. For example, China has a single party—Communist Party. One-party system is not a good option because it is not a democratic option. In the countries having one party system, the liberty of the individual is lost because people are deprived of the right of electing representatives. There is one candidate in whose favour all the citizens have to vote. It cannot be called as elections in real sense.

Question : Write a short note on Indian National Congress (INC).
Answer : Indian National Congress is popularly known as the Congress Party. It is one of the oldest parties of the world. It was founded in 1885. It played an important role in Indian politics at the national and state levels after the independence. Under Nehru the party tried to build a modern secular democratic republic in India. It remained in power till 1977 and then from 1980-1989 but after that its support declined. The party supports secularism and welfare of weaker sections and minorities. It supports new economic reforms with a human face. It emerged as a single largest party with 145 seats in 2004 elections and is currently leading the ruling United Progressive Alliance coalition government at the centre.

Question : (i) What is one party or single party system? Give one example.
(ii) What is be party or two party system? Give example.
Answer : (i) The system in which only one party is allowed to control and run the government is called one-party system. For example, China.
(ii) In some countries, power usually changes between two main parties. Several other parties may exist, contest elections and win a few seats in the national legislatures. But only two main parties have a serious chance of winning majority of seats to form government. Such a party system is called bi-party or two party system. For example, the United States of America, The United Kingdom.

Question : What is the major drawback of the multi-party system? Why does it suit to India?
Answer : The multi-party system often appears very messy and leads to political instability. India has evolved this system because it is a vast country. The social and geographical diversity in such a large country is not easily absorbed by two or even three parties. A multi-party system allows a variety of interests and opinions to enjoy political representation.

Question : Name any three national political parties along with their symbols.
Answer : • Indian National Congress—symbol: hand, palm facing the people
• Bhartiya Janata Party—symbol: a lotus
• Bahujan Samaj Party—symbol: an elephant

Question : ‘Lack of internal democracy within parties is the major challenge to political parties all over the world.’ Analyse the statement,
Answer : 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 organizational 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.

Question : “Serious efforts were made by the legal organisations to reform political parties in India.” Support the statement.
Answer : Serious efforts were made by the legal organisations to reform political parties in India. The following points support the statement.
• The Supreme Court has made it mandatory for the candidates contesting elections to produce an affidavit giving details of property and cases pending against them. It is hoped that this will reduce the influence of money and muscle power in elections.
• Anti-defection law has been passed by amending the constitution to prevent elected MLAs and MPs from changing their parties.
• The Election Commission has made it mandatory for the political parties to hold organisational elections and file their income tax returns.

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

Question : Describe any three main features of a two-party system
Answer : 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.

Question : How do political parties shape public opinion? Explain with three examples.
Answer : Political parties shape public opinion in the following ways.
• They highlight and raise issues.
• Parties have lakhs of members spread all over the country. Often pressure groups are an extension of political parties, among different sections of the society. They help in taking up issues and forming public opinion.
• Sometimes, parties launch movements for solving the problems faced by people. Often the public opinion develops on the same lines that the parties take.

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

Question : What is meant by a national political party? State the conditions required to be a national political party.
Answer : 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 recognised as a national party

Question : ‘No party system is ideal for all countries and all situations.’ Justify the statement with arguments.
Answer : 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 programmes and policies may exist, contest elections and win a few seats, but only the two party 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.

Question : Name the regional political parties predominant in Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Orissa, respectively with their symbols.
Answer : • 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

Question : Analyse the three components of a political party.
Answer : The following are the three elements of a political party.
• The leaders: The leaders contest elections and, if they win, perform the administrative jobs.
• The active members: The active members attend party meetings and are close to the party leaders. They can be called the assistants of the leaders.
• The followers: The followers are the dedicated workers of the party. They work under the able guidance of the active members.

Long Questions for Class 10 Social Science Political Parties

Question : Which three challenges do you feel are being faced by political parties in India? Give your opinion.
Answer : As political parties are the essence of democracy, it is natural that they are often blamed for the failure of any policy or the working of democracy. Mostly, political parties face the following challenges in their working area.
• Lack of internal democracy: Political parties face the problem of internal democracy, which implies that:
• parties do not hold organisational meetings.
• they do not conduct regular internal elections.
• membership of the party members is not fairly registered.
• all the members, except top leaders, are not included in the decision-making process.
• Dynastic succession:
• Another challenge is that in most of the political parties, the top posts are always controlled by the members of one family, which is very unfair to other members.
• Since open and transparent functioning is lacking, there are very few chances for an ordinary worker to rise to the top.
• Money and muscle power: The third challenge is the growing role of money and muscle power.
• Nowadays, elections are focussed mainly on winning at any cost, so parties try to use shortcuts like using 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 try to influence the decision-making process.
• In some cases, parties support criminals who can win elections.
• Absence of a meaningful choice:
• In the present political scenario, there is no ideological difference among the political parties, so they do not provide a meaningful choice to voters.
• Those voters, who really want a change in the government and its policies, never get any positive option. For instance, in India, where we have multi-party system, the differences between the parties over the economic matters have reduced.
• Also, people cannot even elect different leaders because the same set of leaders keep shifting from one party to another. (any three)

Question : Give the symbols of all the six national political parties in India.
Answer :  Name of National Party                                                             Symbols
         (i) Indian National Congress (INC)                                                         Hand
         (ii) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)                                                            Lotus
         (iii) Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)                                                            Elephant
         (iv) Communist Party of India–Marxist (CPI–M)                           Hammer, sickle and star
         (v) Communist Party of India (CPI)                                              Ears of corn and sickle
         (vi) Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)                                                     Clock

Question : What do you mean by the term ‘defection’? What measures were adopted to prevent this practice?
Answer :  ‘Defection’ in politics means moving of a person from one party to another party for some personal benefit. It means changing party allegiance from the party on which a person got elected to a different party. It happens when a legislature, after having been elected from a particular party leaves it and joins in other party.
Measures adopted to prevent this practice:
(i) The Constitution was amended to prevent elected MLAs and MPs from changing parties. This was done because many elected representatives were indulging in defection, in order to become ministers or for cash rewards.
(ii) Now, the law says that if any MLA or MP changes parties, he or she will lose seat in the legislature.
(iii) The new law has brought defection down and has made dissent even more difficult. Now MLAs and MPs have to accept whatever party leaders say.

Question : Give the symbols of all the six national political parties in India.
Answer : Name of National Party Symbols
(i) Indian National Congress (INC) Hand
(ii) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Lotus
(iii) Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Elephant
(iv) Communist Party of India–Marxist (CPI–M) Hammer, sickle and star
(v) Communist Party of India (CPI) Ears of corn and sickle
(vi) Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Clock

Question : How do state or regional political parties contribute in strengthening federalism and democracy in India? Explain with examples.
Answer : State parties are commonly referred to as regional parties such parties play a significant role in strengthening federalism and democracy in India—
(i) Over the last three decades, the number and strength of these parties has expanded. This made the Parliament of India politically more and more diverse.
(ii) In the present political scenario no one national party is able to secure on its own a majority in the Lok Sabha. In such circumstances, state political parties come forward to join hands with the national resulting in the formation of alliances.
(iii) Since 1996, nearly every one of the state party has got an opportunity to be a part of one or the other national level coalition government. This has contributed to the strengthening of federalism and democracy in our country.

Question : Suggest some ways to reform political parties.
Answer : Some reforms which can strengthen political parties are:
(i) A law should be established to regulate the internal affairs of parties, thereby making them more transparent.
(ii) It should be made compulsory for political parties to maintain a register of its members, to follow its own constitution, to have an independent authority, to act as a judge in case of disputes, to hold open elections in case of disputes.
(iii) It should be made mandatory for the political parties to give a minimum number of tickets, about one-third, to women candidates.
(iv) The state should fund election campaigns, thereby eliminating lobbying groups and unfair competition. The government should give parties money to support their election expenses such as petrol, paper, telephone etc. or it could be given in cash on the basis of votes secured by a party in the last elections.
(v) People can put pressure on political parties and this can be done through petitions, publicity and agitations. Ordinary citizens, pressure groups, movements and media can play an important role in this. If political parties feel that they would lose public support by not taking up reforms they will become more serious about reforms.
The quality of democracy depends upon the degree of participation. It is difficult to reform politics if ordinary citizens do not take part in politics and simply criticise it from outside.

Question : Match List I (organisations and struggles) with List II and select the correct answer using the codes given below the lists:

Answer : (c) C A D B

Question : Write briefly about the six major national parties of India.
Answer : In India we have six national parties:
(a) Indian National Congress (INC): Originally the Congress Party, was founded in 1885. It played an important role in Indian politics at the national and state levels after the independence. Under Nehru the party tried to build a modern secular democratic republic in India. The party supports secularism and welfare of weaker sections and minorities.
(b) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP): Originally the Jansangh, was founded in 1980. The party wants to build a strong and modern India by drawing inspiration from India’s culture and values. Cultural nationalism is its important element. It wants a uniform civil code for all people living in India irrespective of the religion, and bans on religious conversions.
(c) Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) was formed in 1984, under the leadership of Kanshi Ram. The party seeks to represent and secure the power for Bahujan Samaj which includes dalits, adivasis, OBCs and religious minorities. It draws inspiration from the ideas and teachings of Sahu Maharaj, Mahatma Phule, Periyar Ramaswami Naicker and Babasaheb Ambedkar. It stands for the cause of securing interest and welfare of dalits and oppressed people.
(d) Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) was founded in 1964. The party believes in Marxism and Leninism. It supports socialism, secularism and democracy and opposes imperialism and communalism. It accepts democratic elections as useful means to secure the objective of socio-economic justice in India.
(e) Communist Party of India (CPI) was formed in 1925. The party believes in Marxism and Leninism, secularism and democracy and is opposed to the forces of secessionism and communalism. It accepts parliamentary democracy as the means of promoting the interest of working class, farmers and the poor.
(f ) National Congress Party (NCP) was formed in 1999 following a split in Congress Party. The party supports democracy, Gandhian secularism, equity, social justice and federalism. It wants high offices in the government to be confined to the natural born citizens.

Question : What are the characteristics of a political party?
Answer :
i. All political parties have a symbol allotted by the Election Commission.
ii. They have some programmes and policies regarding the formation of a government.
iii. All political parties are registered and have large number of supporters with a leader.
iv. Normally they contest in the elections

Question : What are the functions of political parties?
OR ‘Political parties play a major role in democracy’. Give four points to justify this statement.
OR Modern democracies do not exist without political parties. Justify the statement.
Answer :
i. Parties contest elections. In most democracies, elections are fought mainly among the candidates put up by political parties.
ii. Parties put forward different policies and programmes and the voters choose from them. A party reduces a vast multitude of opinions into a few basic positions which it supports.
iii. A government is expected to base its policies on the line taken by the ruling party.
iv. Parties play a decisive role in making laws for a country. Formally, laws are debated and passed in the legislature.
v. Since most of the members belong to a party, they go by the direction of the party leadership, irrespective of their personal opinions.
vi. Parties form and run governments. Parties recruit leaders, trains them and then make them ministers to run the government in the way they want.
vii. Those parties that lose in the elections play the role of opposition to the parties in power, by voicing different views and criticizing government for its failures or wrong policies.
viii. Parties shape public opinion. They raise and highlight issues. Parties have lakhs of members and activists spread all over the country.
ix. Parties provide people access to government machinery and welfare schemes implemented by governments. For an ordinary citizen it is easy to approach a local party leader than a government officer. That is why they feel close to parties even when they do not fully trust them. Parties have to be responsive to people’s needs and demands.

Question : Differentiate between a national and a regional party.
Answer :
i. A party that secures at least 6 per cent of the total votes in an election to the Legislative Assembly of a State and wins at least two seats is recognized as a State party (or regional party).
ii. A party that secures at least six per cent of total votes in Lok Sabha elections or Assembly elections in four States and wins at least four seats in the Lok Sabha is recognized as a national party.
iii. Regional party will have influence in less than three states where as national parties will have
influence in more than three states.
iv. Indian National Congress (I) and Communist Party of India (Marxist) are examples of national parties and Telugu Desam of Andhra Pradesh and Akali Dal of Punjab are examples of regional parties.

Question : What are the various challenges faced by political parties in India?
Answer :
i. The first challenge is lack of internal democracy within parties. All over the world, there is a tendency in political parties towards the concentration of power in one or few leaders at the top. Parties do not keep membership registers, do not hold organizational meetings, and do not conduct internal elections regularly.
ii. Dynastic succession: Since most political parties do not practice open and transparent procedures for their functioning, there no ways for an ordinary worker to rise to the top in a party. Those who happen to be the leaders are in a position of unfair advantage to favour people close to them or even their family members.
iii. The third challenge is about the growing role of money and muscle power in parties, especially during elections. Since parties are focused only on winning elections, they tend to use short-cuts to win elections. They tend to nominate those candidates who have or who can raise lots of money. Rich people and companies who give funds to the parties tend to have influence on the policies and decisions of the party. In some cases, parties support criminals who can win elections.
iv. The fourth challenge is that very often parties do not seem to offer a meaningful choice to the voters. 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.

Question : Suggest some reforms to strengthen parties so that they perform their functions well.
Answer :
i. 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 its members, to follow its own constitution.
ii. It should be made mandatory for political parties to give a minimum number of tickets, about one-third, to women candidates. Similarly, there should be a quota for women in the decision making bodies of the party.
iii. There should be state funding of elections. The government should give parties money to support their election expenses. This support could be given in kind: petrol, paper, telephone etc. Or it
could be given in cash on the basis of the votes secured by the party in the last election.

Question : What are the measures taken by the Government to reform political parties and its leaders?
Answer :
i. The Constitution was amended to prevent elected MLAs and MPs from changing parties. Now the law says that if any MLA or MP changes parties, he or she will lose the seat in the legislature according to the Anti-Defection Law.
ii. The Supreme Court passed an order to reduce the influence of money and criminals. Now, it is mandatory for every candidate who contests elections to file an affidavit giving details of his property and that no criminal cases pending against him.
iii. The Election Commission passed an order making it necessary for political parties to hold their organizational elections and file their income tax returns.