VELAMMAL BODHI CAMPUS -PONNERI

NATIONALISM IN INDIA & POLITICAL PARTIES

NOTES

VERY SHORT ANSWERS

Q.1. When did Mahatma Gandhi return to India ? Ans. 1915.

Q.2. Name any two methods used by Gandhiji to fight against the
Britishers.
Ans. (i) Satyagraha (ii) Non-Violence.

Q.3. Name any four places where Satyagraha was launched by Gandhiji.
Ans. (i) Champaran – Bihar (ii) Kheda – Gujarat (iii) Ahmedabad – Gujarat (iv)
South Africa

Q.4. Name the Act which gave enormous powers to the government to
repress political activities. Ans. Rowlatt Act.

Q.5. Name the General who was responsible for the Jallianwala Bagh
incident.
Ans. General Dyer.

Q.6. Why did Mahatma Gandhi call off Rowlatt Satyagraha ?

Ans. Gandhiji called off Rowlatt Satyagraha due to spread of violence.

Q.7. What was Rowlatt Act ? Ans. It was the black act which gave the
government I and the police to repress political activities, and allowed detention
of political prisoners without trial for two years.

Q.8. How did Mahatma Gandhi react against the Rowlatt Act ?
Ans. Mahatma Gandhi decided to launch a non – violent Civil Disobedience
Movement against the unjust law.

Q.9. Mention the limitation of Rowlatt Satyagraha.

Ans. (i) It was limited mostly in cities and towns.
(ii) People started using violent methods so Gandhiji had to call off the
Satyagraha.

Q.10. Why was the Khilafat Committee formed ?

Ans. The Khilafat Committee was formed to defend the khalifa’s temporal
powers.

Q.11. Who was the writer of the book ‘Hind Swaraj Ans. Mahatma Gandhi.

Q.12. When was the Non-cooperation Khilafat Movement launched?

Ans. January 1921.

Q.13. Who was Baba Ramchandra ?

Ans. He was a Sanyasi who led Non-cooperation movement in Awadh.

Q.14. What were the major demands of the peasants who participated in
the Noncooperation Khilafat movement ? Mention any two ?
Ans. (i) Reduction of revenue. (ii) Abolition of begar.

Q.15. Why the tribal peasants participated in the Non-cooperation

Khilafat movement ?
Ans. The colonial government had closed large forests areas, preventing people
from entering the forests to graze their cattle or to collect tueiwood and fruits.

Q.16. What was the Inland Emigration Act of 1859?

Ans. Under the Inland Emigration Act of 1859, plantation workers were not
permitted to leave the tea gardens without permission.

Q.17. When was Non-Cooperation Movement withdrawn by Gandhiji ? Give

reason.
Ans. The Non Cooperation movement was withdrawn in 1922 because of a
violent incident in Chauri Chaura.

Q.18. Who were the founders of the Swaraj Party? Ans. C.R. Das and
Motilal Nehru.

Q.19. Who was Alluri Sitaram Raju ?

Ans. He was a nationalist of Gudem Hills of Andhra Pradesh who lead the Non
Cooperation of 1921.

(1) The growth of Modern nationalism in the colonies is linked to an anti-

colonial movement due to the factors as mentioned below :
 1. People began discovering their unity in the process of their struggle with
colonialism. The sense of being oppressed under colonialism provided a
shared bond that tied many different groups together.
2. As each class and group felt the effects of colonialism differently, their
experiences were varied and their notions of freedom were not always the
same, so the Congress under Mahatma Gandhi tried to forge these
groups together within one movement.
Thus, in spite of differences and conflicts, different groups and
communities came under the banner of Indian National Congress and
took part in various movements which were anti¬colonial or against the
British.

(2) The First World War helped in the growth of the National Movement in
India as it created a new economic and political situation as mentioned
below :

1. The defense expenditure had increased.

2. War loans were taken and more taxes were imposed.
3. Custom duties were raised.
4. Income tax was introduced.
5. The rise in prices led to extreme hardships for the people.
6. There was widespread discontentment in the rural area due to forced
recruitment of soldiers.
7. In 1918-19 and 1920-21 crops failed in many parts of India resulting in
acute shortages of food.
8. There was influenza epidemic too. According to the Census of 1921,
twelve to thirteen million people perished as a result of famines and
epidemics. People thought that their hardships and suffering would come
to an end after the war but that did not happen. So these factors were
responsible for the rise of nationalism in India.

(3) Indians were outraged by the Rowlatt Act (1919) due to the following
reasons :

1. They had hoped that after the war their hardships would be over and the
government would take steps to improve their condition.
2. On the other hand, the government got the Rowlatt Act passed in the
Imperial Legislative Council against the united opposition of the Indian
members.
3. The Act gave the government enormous powers to repress political
activities. It allowed detention of political prisoners without trial for two
years.
 4. These provisions meant the suspension of two principles of justice – trial
by jury and habeas corpus – the rights safeguarding against illegal
imprisonment.
5. The Rowlatt Act was considered as Black Law and the Indians under the
leadership of Gandhi decided to oppose it by non-violent civil
disobedience which would start with a hartal on 6 April.

(4) Gandhiji decided to withdraw the Non-Cooperation Movement due to

the reasons as mentioned below :

1. The movement was turning violent in many places.

2. Gandhiji thought that Satyagrahis needed to be properly trained before
they would be ready for mass struggles. This was in context of the
incident in Chauri-Chaura, a village in Gorakhpur district UP where
twenty two policemen were brutally killed after they had fired on a
political procession.
3. There had been disturbances in Madras and Calcutta also. The above
factors made it clear that the country was not yet ready of mass
movement. So Gandhiji prevailed upon the Congress Working Committee
to call off the movement.

4. What is meant by the idea of Satyagraha?

Or
Explain the idea of Satyagraha according to Gandhiji.
Ans.

1. Satyagraha is pure soul-force.

2. Truth is the very substance of the soul. That is why this force is called
Satyagraha.
3. The soul is informed with knowledge. It burns the flame of love.
4. Non-violence is the supreme dharma.
5. The idea of Satyagraha emphasised the power of truth and the need to
search for truth. It suggested that if the cause was true, if the struggle
was against injustice, then the physical force was not necessary to fight
the oppressor.
6. Without seeking vengeance or being aggressive, a satyagrahi could win
the battle through non-violence.
7. In Satyagraha, people including the oppressors – had to be persuaded to
see the truth, instead of being forced to accept truth through the use of
violence.
 8. In this way by this struggle, truth was bound to ultimately triumph.
Mahatma Gandhi believed that this dharma of non-violence would unite
all Indians.

5. Write a newspaper report on :

(a) The Jallianwala Bagh massacre

Ans. (a) The Jallianwala Bagh massacre: A public meeting was announced for
the 13th April 1919, at Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar to protest against the
Rowlatt Act. The people were allowed to assemble there. After they had
gathered there in thousands, General Dyer marched there with armoured cars
and troops. Without giving any warning to the people to disperse, he ordered
firing on the unarmed, and peaceful people. The casualties among the Indians
were very heavy. Dyer’s purpose in doing so was to ‘produce a moral effect’, to
create in the minds of Satyagrahis, a feeling of terror and awe. This massacre
of innocent people in thousands converted Mahatma Gandhi into a non-
cooperator.

6. List all the different social groups which joined the Non-Cooperation
Movement of 1921. Choose any three, and write about their hopes and
struggles to show why they joined the movement.
Ans. Social Groups who took part in the NonCooperation Movement. In the
Non- Cooperation Movement (1920-1922), the following social groups took part.
(I) Middle-class people in the towns.

1. The movement in the cities: The Movement started with middle-class

participation in the cities. Thousands of students left government-
controlled schools and colleges, headmasters and teachers resigned, and
lawyers gave up their legal practices.
2. Boycott of council elections: The Council elections were boycotted in
most provinces except Madras (Chennai), where the Justice Party, the
party of the nonBrahmans, felt that entering the council was one way of
gaining some power, something that usually only Brahmans had an
access to.
3. Swadeshi: The Non-Cooperation Movement had a great impact on the
Indian textile industry. Swadeshi goods, especially cloth got a great
impetus. Foreign goods were boycotted, liquor shops picketed, and
foreign cloth burnt in huge bonfires.
4. Impact on industry: In many places, merchants and traders refused to
trade in foreign goods or finance foreign trade. Due to this, the demand
for Indian textile mills and handlooms went up. The increase in demand
provided a big relief to the vanishing textile industry of India.
5. Movement in the countryside: Though people in the countryside
interpreted the idea of ‘Swaraj’ in their own way but they participated in
the movement on large scale. In Awadh, peasants launched the
 movement against the talukdars and landlords. Whereas the plantation
workers launched the movement against the tea estate owners.

(II) Peasants in rural areas.

(i) Participants: In the countryside, the movement was led by the peasants,
tribals and the local leaders. For example, in Awadh, it was Baba Ramchandra
sanyasi, who had earlier been to Fiji as an indentured labourer.

(ii) Why rural people participated?

The movement here was not against the Britishers but against talukdars and
landlords. The problems of the rural people were different from those of the
urban people:

• The talukdars and landlords were demanding very high rents and a
variety of other taxes.
• Peasants had to do begarand work at the landlord’s farms without any
payment.
• The peasants had no security of tenure. They were regularly evicted so
that they could acquire no security of tenure.

As the problems of the people were different, their demands were also different.
The peasant
movement demanded:

• Reduction of revenue
• Abolition of begar
• Redistribution of land
• Social boycott of oppressive landlords.

(iii) Ways of protests: The Movement in the countryside had a different angle.
In many places, Nai-dhobi bandhs were organised by the Panchayats to deprive
the landlords of the services of barbers, cobblers, washermen, etc. Even
national leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru went to villages in Awadh to know the
grievances of the people. By October, the Awadh Kissan Sabhas was set up
headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, Baba Ramchandra, and a few others. When the
movement spread in 1921, the houses of talukdars and merchants were
attacked. The movement turned violent which was not liked by some of the
Congress leaders.

(III) Tribal people.

Most of the tribal people were dependent on forests for their livelihood but
under the new Forest Policy, the government had put several restrictions on
the people :

• Closing large forest area for the tribal people.

• Forcing the local people to contribute begar.
• Preventing people from entering the forests to graze their cattle, or to
collect fuelwood and fruits.

All these steps enraged the hill people. Not only were their livelihoods affected,
but they felt that their traditional rights were also being denied. So the people
revolted.

(IV) Plantation workers.

(i) For plantation workers in Assam, freedom meant the right to move freely in
and out of the confined space in which they were enclosed, and it meant
retaining a link with the village from which they had come.

• The government had passed the Inland Emigration Act of 1859 under
which plantation workers were not permitted to leave the tea estates
without permission, and in fact, they were rarely given such permission.
• When the plantation workers heard of the Non-Cooperation Movement,
thousands of them defied the authorities, left the plantations and headed
towards their homes.
• The plantation workers believed that the Gandhi Raj was coming, and
everyone would be given land in their own villages.

POLITICAL PARTIES

1.What is meant by a political party?

Political party is a group of people who come together to contest elections and
to hold power in the government. They agree on some policies to promote
collective good. They seek to implement those policies by winning popular
support through elections. Thus political parties tend to fill political offices and
exercise political power.

2What are the three main components of a political party? 1.The leaders; 2.The
active members; and 3.The followers
3.How many parties are needed in any democratic system to compete in
elections and provide a fair chance for the competing parties to come to power?
At least two parties.

4.What is the source of inspiration of the ‘Bhartiya Janata Party’?)

The source of inspiration of the Bhartiya Janata Party or the BJP is ancient
Indian culture and values.

5.In which state does ‘Biju Janata Dal’ exist as a regional party?)
Odisha (Orissa)

6.What does Universal Adult Suffrage stand for? Answer:

Universal Adult suffrage stands for the ‘Right to Vote’.

7.Given one point of difference between a pressure group and a political party.
A pressure group is an organized or unorganized body that seeks to promote its
interests while a political party is a body that seeks to attain political power by
contesting elections.

8.Which special privilege is given to recognised political parties by the Election

Commission? RPP are given a special election symbol. Only official candidates
of that party can use the election symbol.

9.Name the national political party which draws inspiration from the teachings
of Sahu Maharaj, Mahatma Phule, Naicker and Babasaheb Ambedkar. Bahujan
Samaj Party.

10.Name any two regional parties of West Bengal. 1.Forward BLOCK (1940),
2.TRINAMOOL CONGRESS (1997).

11.What is the guiding philosophy of Bhartiya 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.

12.Name any one political party that has national level political organisation
but not recognised as a national political party.
State parties like the Samajwadi Party, Samata Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal
have national level political organisations with units in several states but are
not recognised as national parties.
13.Why did India adopt multi-party system? Give reasons.
India adopted multi-party system because:
1.India is a large country and has social and geographical diversities.
2.It is easy to absorb different diversities in a multi-party system.

14.Why do political parties involve partisanship? Partisanship is marked by a

tendency to take a side and inability to take a balanced view on an issue.
Parties reflect fundamental political divisions in a society. Parties are a part of
the society and they involve partisanship.

15.Mention the ideology of Indian National Congress.

Under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru, the Indian National Congress
sought to build a modern 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.

16..Name any one political party of India which grew out of a movement.
Asom Gana Parishad.

Short Answer Questions (SA) 3 Marks

1.Name the national political party which gets inspiration from India’s
ancient culture and values. Mention four features of that party. Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) founded in 1980 draws inspiration from India’s ancient
culture and values.
Features:

1.Cultural Nationalism (Hindutva) is an important element in its conception of

Indian nationhood and politics.

2.Wants full territorial and political integration of Jammu and Kashmir with
India.

3.A uniform civil code for all people living in the country irrespective of religion
and ban on religious conversions.
4.Earlier limited to north and west and to urban areas, the party expanded
support in the south, east, the north-east and rural areas.

2. “No party system is ideal for all countries and in all situations.” Justify
the statement with five arguments.
Parties are a necessary condition for a democracy. The rise of political parties is
directly linked to the emergence of representative democracies. Party system is
not something any country can choose. It evolves depending on the nature of
society, its social and regional divisions, its history of politics and system of
elections.

Each country develops a party system that is conditioned by its special

circumstances. For example, India has evolved a multi-party system, because
of its social and geographical diversity which cannot be easily absorbed by two
or three parties.
Political parties make policies to promote collective good and there can be
different views on what is good for all. Therefore no system is ideal for all
countries and situations.

3.Describe the three components of a political party. (CW) Components of a

political party are: 1.The leaders, 2.Active members and 3.The followers.
1.The leaders are recruited and trained by parties. They are made ministers to
run the government. The big policy decisions are taken by the political
executives that come from the political parties.
2.Parties have lakhs of members and activists spread over the country. Many of
the pressure groups are the extensions of political parties among different
sections of society. But since most of the members belong to a party, they go by
the direction of the party leadership, irrespective of their personal opinion.
3.The followers are the ordinary citizens, who believe in the policies of their
respective party and give popular support through elections. Often the opinion
of the followers crystallise on the lines parties take.

4.What is a multi-party system? Why has India adopted a multi-party

system? Explain. Or
How has multi-party system strengthened democracy in India? ( CW)
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.

Each country develops a party system that is suitable for its special
circumstances. India has evolved as a multi-party system because its social
and geographical diversity cannot be absorbed by two or three parties. Thus,
such representation strengthens democracy. Multi-party system facilitates
representation of regional and geographical diversities. In India, several
regional parties are in power at the State level such as the DMK in Tamil Nadu,
Akali Dal in Punjab the BSP in Uttar Pradesh.

5. “Lack of internal democracy within parties is the major challenge to

political parties all over the world”. Analyse the statement.
1.Most political parties do not practise open and transparent procedures for
their functioning like maintaining membership registers, holding organisational
meetings or conducting internal elections regularly. Thus, ordinary members of
the party do not get sufficient information on the happenings in the party and
have no means to influence the decisions.
2.Also, there are very few chances for an ordinary worker to rise to the top in a
party. Since one or, at the most, a few leaders exercise paramount power in the
party, those who disagree with the leadership, find it difficult to continue in the
party.
3.Those who happen to be the leaders are in a position to take undue
advantage and favour people close to them or even their family members. And,
in many parties, the top positions are invariably controlled by members of one
family which is bad for democracy.

6. “Dynastic succession is one of the most serious challenges before the

political parties.” Analyse the statement.
Most political parties do not practise 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 favour people close to them or even their family members. In
many parties in India, we see a trend of dynastic succession. 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. This is so because people
who do not have adequate experience or popular support come to occupy
positions of power.More than loyalty to party principles and policies, personal
loyalty to the leader becomes more important. This tendency is seen all over
the world, even in older democracies.
7.What is meant by a ‘national political party’? State the conditions
required to be a national political party. (CW)
National political parties have their units in various states. By and large all
these units follow the same policies, programmes and strategy that is decided
at the national level.
Conditions required to be a national political party:
1.A party that secures at least 6% of the total votes in general elections of Lok
Sabha or assembly elections in four states.
2.A party that wins at least 4 seats in the Lok Sabha.

8.What is meant by regional political party? State the conditions required

to be recognised as a ‘regional political party’.
A regional party is a party that is present in only some states. Regional parties
or State parties need not be regional in their ideology. They have state identity
as they are present only in some states. Some of these parties are all India
parties that happen to have succeeded only in states. Example, Samajwadi
Party, Rashtriya Janta Dal.
Conditions required for a party to be recognized as a regional political party:
1.A party that secures atleast six percent of the total votes in an election to the
legislative assembly of a state.
2.Wins atleast two seats in the legislative assembly.

9. “Nearly every one of the state parties wants to get an opportunity to be

a part of one or the other national level coalition.” Support the statement
with arguments. The state parties also referred to as regional parties are not
necessarily regional in ideology. Some of these parties are all India parties that
happen to have succeeded only in some states. Over the last three decades, the
number and strength of these parties has expanded. Before the general
elections one national party was able to secure on its own a majority in the Lok
Sabha.

As a result, the national parties were compelled to form alliances with state
parties.

Since 1996, nearly every one of the state parties got an opportunity to be a part
of one or the other national level coalition government. This contributed to the
strengthening of federalism and democracy. Example of state parties having
national level political organisation with units in several states are Samajwadi
Party (SP), Rashtriya Janata Dal, Samata Party.

Long Answer Questions (LA)

1.Explain any five suggestions to reform political parties in India. Or
Suggest and explain any five effective measures to reform political
parties. (CW) Five suggestions made to reform the political parties:
1.Law to regulate the internal affairs of political parties like maintaining a
register of its members, to follow its own constitution, to have independent
authority, to act as judge in case of party dispute, to hold open elections to the
highest post.
2.It should be mandatory for political parties to give one-third tickets to women
candidates. Also there should be quota for women on the decision-making
bodies of the party.
3.There should be state funding of elections. The government should give
money to parties to support their election expenses in kind (petrol, paper,
telephone, etc.) or in cash on the basis of votes secured by the party in the
previous election.
4.The candidate should be educated, so that he can solve and understand
people’s problems. His previous record should be cleared. He should be honest
and there should be no criminal case against him.
5.Citizens can reform politics if they take part directly and join political parties.
People can put pressure on political parties through petitions, publicity in
media, agitations etc.

2.Explain the growing role of money and muscle power in political parties. Or
How do money and muscle power play an important role in elections? Answer:
Political parties need to face and overcome the growing challenge of Money and
Muscle power during elections in order to remain effective instruments of
democracy.

Since parties are focussed only on winning elections, they tend to use
shortcuts to win elections, for example, like booth-rigging, distribution of food,
money, alcohol, etc. to the poor voters to get their votes. Political parties tend
to nominate those candidates who have or 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. These days, parties are supporting
criminals who can win elections. This is a major cause of concern to the
democrats all over the world who are worried about the increasing role of rich
people and big companies in democratic politics.

3.Why do we need political parties? Explain. Or

Describe any five major functions performed by political parties. (CW)
To fill political offices and exercise political power, political parties are needed
to perform a series of functions, which are the following:
1.Parties contest elections. Elections are fought mainly among candidates put
up by political parties.
In India, top party leaders choose candidates for contesting elections.
2.Parties put forward different policies and programmes. Political parties in a
democracy group together similar opinions, to provide a direction in which
government policies can be formulated,
3.Parties make laws for a country. Laws are debated and passed in the
legislature.
4.Parties that lose elections play the role of the opposition. Opposition parties
voice their views by criticizing government for its failure or wrong policies.
5.Parties shape public opinion. They raise and highlight issues and resolve
people’s problems. Many pressure groups are the extensions of political parties.

6.Parties provide people access to government machinery and welfare schemes.

For an ordinary citizen it is easy to approach a local party leader than a
government officer.

4.Examine the role of opposition parties in a Democracy. Opposition

parties play an important role in democracies. They play both positive and
negative role. Positive role,

1.They ensures political party in power does not misuse or abuse its power;

2.They expose the weaknesses of the ruling party;

3.They also keep a close vigil on the bills and expenditure of the government.

Negative role.
1.They target the government and aim at dislodging and discrediting the
government for all the ills and the troubles the people face;
2.Through stalling the proceedings of the parliament, dhamas and gheravs, it
curtails the progress of the country.
The opposition’s work is not to abstract the functioning of the administration
but keep a close watch on the working of the party in power so that democracy
becomes meaningful.

5. “About hundred years ago there were few countries that had hardly any
political party. Now there are few countries that do not have political
parties.” Examine this statement.
We can understand the necessity of political parties by imagining a situation
without parties. Every candidate in the election will be independent. Therefore,
no major policy changes will be made. Elected representatives will be
accountable to their constituency but no one will be responsible for the smooth
running of the country. As societies become large and complex, they need an
agency to gather views on various issues and to present them to the
government. There is a need to bring various representatives together so that a
responsible government can be formed.

A mechanism is needed to support or restrain the government to make policies,

justify or oppose them. Political parties fulfil the needs of a representative
government and are thus a necessary condition for a democracy.

6. “All over the world, people express their dissatisfaction with the failure
of political parties to perform their functions well.” Analyse the statement
with arguments Or, Which three challenges do you feel are being faced by
political parties in India? Give your opinion.
Or, Identify and explain challenges which political parties need to face
and over come in order to remain affective instruments of democracy.
(CW)
Since parties are the most visible face in a democracy, people blame them for
whatever is wrong with the working of democracy.
There are four major areas where the working of political parties faces
challenge:
(i) Lack of internal democracy. There is concentration of power in one or a
few leaders at the top. Parties do not keep membership registers, do not hold
organisational meetings and do not conduct internal elections regularly. More
than loyalty to party principles and policies, it is personal loyalty which
becomes more important. 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 leadership find it difficult to continue in the
party.

(ii) Dynastic succession. In many parties, top positions are always held by
members of one family. Most political parties do not practice transparent and
open procedures for their functioning and it is very difficult for an ordinary
worker to rise to the top. This is bad for democracy, since people who do not
have adequate experience or popular support come to occupy positions of
power.

(iii) Money and muscle power. Since parties are focussed only on winning
elections, they tend to use short-cuts to win elections. They nominate
candidates who have or can raise money and thus are able to have influence on
the policies and decisions of the party.

(iv) No meaningful choice. There has been a decline in the ideological

differences among parties. They agree more on fundamental aspects, but differ
only in details, on how policies are to be framed and implemented. Sometimes
people cannot even elect different leaders as the same set of leaders keep
shifting from one party to another.

7. “Political parties are a necessary condition for a democracy”. Analyse

the statement with examples.
“Political parties are a necessary condition for a democracy” in the following
ways:
1.Without political parties democracies cannot exist. If we do not have political
parties, every candidate in elections will be independent.
2.No one will be able to make any promises to the people about any major
policy changes.
3.The government may be formed but its utility will remain uncertain.
4.Elected representatives will be accountable to their constituency, for what
they do in their locality but no one will be responsible for how the country will
run.
5.As societies become large and complex they also needed some agencies to
gather different views on various issues and to present these to the
government, that’s why political parties are needed.

8.Describe any five efforts made to reform political parties in India. (CW)
Five efforts made to reform the political parties:
1.Law to regulate the internal affairs of political parties like maintaining a
register of its members, to follow its own constitution, to have independent
authority, to act as judge in case of party dispute, to hold open elections to the
highest post.
2.It should be mandatory for political parties to give one-third tickets to women
candidates. Also there should be quota for women on the decision-making
bodies of the party.
3.There should be state funding of elections. The government should give
money to parties to support their election expenses in kind (petrol, paper,
telephone, etc.) or in cash on the basis of votes secured by the party in the
previous election.
4.The candidate should be educated, so that he can solve and understand
people’s problems. His previous record should be cleared. He should be honest
and there should be no criminal case against him.
5.Citizens can reform politics if they take part directly and join political parties.
People can put pressure on political parties through petitions, publicity in
media, agitations etc.