Chapter – 4

Political Parties

In this post we have given the detailed notes of class 10 Social Science (Political Science) Chapter 4 (Political Parties) in English. These notes are useful for the students who are going to appear in class 10 board exams. Note: this chapter was numbered Chapter 6 in the older NCERT edition; in the current rationalised book (2026-27) it is Chapter 4.

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Chapter 4: Political Parties

Why Do We Need Political Parties?

Modern democracies have millions of citizens, each with different opinions and needs. It would be impossible to run a government if every citizen contested elections independently and took decisions on their own once elected. Political parties solve this problem by bringing together people who share similar views, so that they can work as an organised group to win power and implement policies.

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 programmes for the society, considering them to be good for society as a whole, and work together to implement these policies.

Every political party has three components:

• Leaders: The people who lead the party and take the most important decisions in its name.
• Active Members: Those who participate in the day-to-day activities of the party, campaign during elections, and help frame its policies.
• Followers: Those who believe in the policies and programmes of the party and support it, though they may not be active party workers.

A political party is thus a group of people who share a common opinion about how the country should be governed, and who come together to contest elections and try to hold power in order to pursue that vision.

Functions of Political Parties

In a democracy, political parties perform several important functions that are essential to the smooth running of the political system.

1. Contest Elections

In most democracies, elections are largely fought among candidates put up by political parties. Parties select their candidates in different ways, and voters choose from among these candidates.

2. Put Forward Policies and Programmes

Parties put forward different policies and programmes, and voters choose from them based on the party’s ideology or the appeal of its programme.

3. Play a Decisive Role in Making Laws

Laws are formally debated and passed in the legislature, but since most legislators belong to a party, they usually vote according to the decisions of their party leadership, regardless of their personal opinions. In this sense, parties effectively control law-making.

4. Form and Run Governments

Parties form and run governments. Large parties that win a majority on their own form the government. When no single party gets a majority, several parties may join together to form a coalition government.

5. Play the Role of Opposition

Parties that lose elections play the role of opposition to the parties in power, voicing different views and criticising the government for its failures or wrong policies. Opposition parties mobilise opposition to the government.

6. Shape Public Opinion

Parties shape public opinion. They raise and highlight issues, and often organise protests, movements, and agitations, launching movements for the resolution of problems faced by people. They have close links with pressure groups and social movements.

7. Provide Access to Government Machinery and Welfare Schemes

For an ordinary citizen, it is easy to approach a local party leader than a government officer. Parties act as a link between the government machinery and the people, providing access to welfare schemes implemented by the government.

Necessity of Political Parties

It is very difficult to think of democracy without political parties. Without political parties, every candidate in elections would be independent, and no one would be able to make any promises to the people about any major policy changes. There would be no way for citizens to hold anyone accountable, and no meaningful democracy can function without organised political parties.

How Many Parties Should a Democracy Have?

Different democracies across the world follow different party systems, based on how many parties compete for power.

One-Party System

In some countries, only one party is allowed to control and run the government. This is not considered a good option, since a one-party system is not a democratic option — democracy requires at least the possibility of a choice between two or more parties. Example: China, where only the Communist Party is allowed to rule.

Two-Party System

In some countries, power usually changes hands between two main parties. Several other parties may exist, contest elections, and even win a few seats, but only the two major parties have a serious chance of winning a majority of seats to form the government. Examples: USA (Republican and Democratic Party) and the UK (Conservative and Labour Party).

Multi-Party System

If several parties compete for power and more than two parties have a reasonable chance of forming the government, either on their own strength or in alliance with others, it is called a multi-party system. India has a multi-party system, where several national and state/regional parties come together to form pre- and post-election alliances or fronts to contest elections and form governments, such as the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

A multi-party system can sometimes appear confusing and unstable, but it is well suited to a large and diverse country like India, as it allows several regional, social, and community-based interests to find political representation.

National and State Parties in India

The Election Commission of India recognises parties as National Parties or State (regional) Parties on the basis of fixed criteria, such as the percentage of votes secured and the number of seats won (at the national level or in particular states). Recognised parties are given a unique election symbol, which is reserved for their use only.

Major National Parties in India

• Indian National Congress (INC)
• Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
• Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)
• Communist Party of India (CPI)
• Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M)
• Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and others

State/Regional Parties

These are parties that have a strong presence and are influential in one or a few states, representing regional aspirations. Examples include the Biju Janata Dal (Odisha), Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress (Andhra Pradesh), Shiv Sena (Maharashtra), DMK and AIADMK (Tamil Nadu), Shiromani Akali Dal (Punjab), and Samajwadi Party (Uttar Pradesh), among others. Such regional parties often play a decisive role in national coalition governments.

Challenges to Political Parties

Although political parties are essential to democracy, they face several challenges across the world today.

1. Lack of Internal Democracy

All over the world, there is a tendency in political parties towards the concentration of power in one or a few leaders at the top. Ordinary members do not have adequate information about how decisions are taken, and are not consulted effectively in the decision-making process.

2. Dynastic Succession

In many parties, top leadership positions are controlled by members of one family, and party leaders favour their family members in candidate selection, denying opportunities to more deserving and hardworking party workers.

3. Growing Role of Money and Muscle Power

Since parties want to win elections at any cost, they tend to select candidates who have or can raise a lot of money and, sometimes, resort to muscle power (criminal connections) to win elections. Rich people and criminals therefore find it easier to get elected.

4. Criminalisation of Politics

Parties often give tickets to candidates involved in criminal cases because they can win elections, leading to criminals becoming law-makers, which is a serious threat to democracy.

5. Not Offering Meaningful Choice to Voters

There is not much difference in the policies and programmes of various parties in many cases, and citizens do not get a meaningful choice of policies to vote for.

How Can Parties Be Reformed?

Several measures have been taken over time to reform political parties and their functioning in India.

1. Anti-Defection Law

The Constitution was amended to prevent legislators from changing parties after being elected. Under the anti-defection law, if an elected member changes parties, they can lose their seat in the legislature. This has helped bring more stability but has also reduced the ability of individual legislators to express dissent.

2. Mandatory Disclosure Through Affidavits

The Supreme Court has passed an order that makes it mandatory for every candidate contesting elections to file an affidavit before the Election Commission, declaring:

• Details of any pending criminal cases against the candidate
• Details of the assets and liabilities of the candidate and their family
• The educational qualifications of the candidate

3. Minimum Requirement for Women Candidates

Some laws have made it mandatory for parties to field a minimum number of women candidates in elections, aimed at increasing the representation of women in legislatures.

4. Regulation of Party Funding and Internal Organisation

It is now mandatory for parties to hold their organisational elections and file their income tax returns for the income received on party fundraising appeals.

5. Ways Forward

• Public funding of elections: Providing government funds or resources (money, cars, and public spaces) to parties for contesting elections so that they rely less on funds from big donors and corporations.
• Legal regulation of internal party functioning: Making it legally binding for parties to maintain a register of members, follow their own constitution, have an independent authority to act as a judge in case of internal disputes, and hold open and fair internal elections.
• Legislation for a fixed proportion of women candidates: Making it legally mandatory for parties to give a certain number of tickets, at least one-third, to women candidates.
• Continuous public scrutiny of party activities by citizens, pressure groups, and the media.

Ultimately, laws alone cannot bring about reform in political parties. What is needed most is the willingness of the people who form and run the parties to reform themselves and follow democratic practices in letter and spirit.

Key Points to Remember

• A political party is a group of people who come together to contest elections and hold power in the government.
• Every party has three components — leaders, active members, and followers.
• Parties contest elections, form policies, run governments or play the role of opposition, shape public opinion, and provide people access to government machinery.
• A meaningful democracy cannot function without organised political parties.
• One-party systems are undemocratic (example: China); the USA and the UK follow a two-party system; India follows a multi-party system, with alliances like the NDA and UPA.
• The Election Commission of India recognises parties as National Parties and State/Regional Parties based on fixed criteria.
• Challenges facing parties include lack of internal democracy, dynastic succession, the growing role of money and muscle power, criminalisation of politics, and not offering a meaningful choice to voters.
• Reforms include the anti-defection law, mandatory affidavits on criminal cases/assets/education, minimum representation for women candidates, public funding of elections, and legal regulation of internal party functioning.

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