Class 10 Social Science: Political Parties important questions

Political Parties is a chapter of Class 10 Social Science for the CBSE. These 11 questions are marked Very Important, Important or Practice, and each answer has been checked by our team. Use them to revise, not as a prediction of what will come in the exam.

1. Very Important · 5 marks

   1. Describe the role of political parties in India. OR Describe the necessity or utility of political parties in democratic countries.

   i. Parties contest elections. ii. Parties put forward different policies and programmes and the voters choose from them. iii. Parties play a decisive role in making laws for a country. iv. Parties form and run governments. v. Those parties that lose in the elections play the role of opposition to the parties in power, by voicing different views and criticising government for its failures or wrong policies. vi. Parties shape public opinion. vii. Parties provide people access to government machinery and welfare schemes implemented by governments. viii Any other relevant point (ANY FIVE POINTS) OR Describe the necessity or utility of political parties in democratic countries. ANS. i. Elected representative will be accountable to their constituency for what they do in the locality. The rise of political parties is directly linked to the emergence of representative democracies. large scale societies need representative democracy. ii. As societies became large and complex, they also needed some agency to gather different views on various issues and to present these to the government. iii. They needed some way to bring various representatives together so that a responsible government could be formed. iv. They needed a mechanism to support or restrain the government, make policies, justify or oppose them. v. Political parties fulfil these needs that every representative government has. We can say that parties are a necessary condition for a democracy vii Any other relevant point (ANY FIVE POINTS)

2. Practice · 1 marks

   2. Choose the right option to fill in the blank. The emergence of is directly connected to the rise of political parties. a. Monitory democracies b. Direct democracies c. Representative democracies d. Constitutional democracies

   c. Representative democracies

3. Practice · 1 marks

   3. Which of the following statements Is correct keeping the requirement of formation of government in view. Statement i: It is possible for independent candidates to form a government. Statement ii: Government formation is exclusively reserved for political parties. Statement iii: The formation of government is limited to only elected political parties. Statement iv: Government can only be formed by political parties that are elected and hold a majority. Options: a. Statement i and ii are right. b. Statement i, ii and iii are right. c. Statement iii is right. d. Only statement iv is right.

   d. Only statement iv is right.

4. Practice · 1 marks

   4. There are two statements marked as Assertion (A) and Reason (R). Mark your answer as per the codes provided below: Assertion (A): India is a country with a multi-party system set up. Reason (R): The multi-party system often appears very messy and leads to political instability. a. Both (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A) b. Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A) c. (A) is correct but (R) is wrong d. (A) is wrong but (R) is correct. A. Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A. B. Both A and R are true, and R is not the correct explanation of A. C. A is true but R is false. D. A is false but R is true.

   b. Both (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)

5. Very Important · 5 marks

   5. (A) : Analyse the role of a multiparty system in a democratic country like India. OR (B) : Evaluate the differences between the national and regional parties and assess the requirements for a regional party to become a national party. (A) : A farmer has borrowed money from a money lender at a high rate of

   In a democratic system like India, multiparty politics plays a crucial role in representing the diverse interests and aspirations of the citizens. - The multiparty system allows for a competitive and dynamic political environment, where parties with different ideologies and agedas can participate and compete for the support of the electorate. - The presence of multiple parties also provides a check and balance against any one party becoming too powerful and dominant. - This system allows a variety of interests and opinions to enjoy political representation. People can make a choice between several candidates. - Through this system different and diverse parties could represent the sections of society and power does not absorb in the hands of one single party. India adopted this system because of the vast diversity and plurality in the nation. (Any other relevant points) OR Q. Evaluate the significant distinction between the national and regional parties and assess the requirements for a regional party to become a national party. Ans: The difference between the National parties and the regional Parties are: - National parties are powerful in the nation and deal with national issues. - Regional parties’ power is limited to a specific region or state, only the issues and demands of a specific region are discussed by regional parties. - National parties’ actions offer preference to national issues over regional problems. - Regional parties’ operations are confined to the state. The reginal parties must attain the following requirements to become a National Party: - A party must gain at least six percent of the total votes in lok sabha or assembly elections in four states to be a national party and win at least four seats in Lok Sabha. - A party has to receive at least six percent of the total votes in the legislative election to become a regional party and win at least two seats. Examples of national parties are the BJP, Congress and BSP. The examples of regional parties are DMK, Telugu Desam.) (Any other relevant points) A farmer has borrowed money from a money lender at a high rate of interest,

6. Practice · 1 marks

   6. Which of the following is the main factor that led to the rise of multiple political parties at the same level in India? (A) A federal political system (B) Varied economic conditions. (C) Linguistic and regional diversity (D) Low levels of literacy and political awareness

   (C)- linguistic and regional diversity

7. Very Important · 5 marks

   7. (A) Political parties are a necessary condition for a democracy.’ Analyse the statement with relevant points. OR (B) "Political parties today face several challenges that impact their democratic functioning." Justify this statement.

   In a democratic set-up, political parties are required because without political parties: 1. Every candidate in the elections will be independent. No promises could be made, and the utility of the government formed will remain uncertain. 2. No one will be responsible for running the country. Elected representatives. 6 Social Science-MS-X-2024-25 will only be accountable to their constituency. 3. There will be no agency to gather and present different views on various issues to the government. 4. No one will be responsible for bringing various representatives together to form a responsible government. 5. There will be no mechanism to support the government, make policies and justify or oppose them. (Any other relevant point) OR Ans— 1. 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 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 connections needed to influence the decisions. 2. The second challenge of dynastic succession is related to the first one. Since most political parties do not practise open and transparent procedures for their functioning, 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 to favour people close to them or even their family members. In many parties, the top positions are always controlled by members of one family. 3. The third challenge is about the growing role of money and muscle power in parties, especially during elections. Since parties are focussed only on winning elections, they tend to use shortcuts to win elections. They tend to nominate those candidates who have or can raise lots of money. Rich people and companies who give funds to the political parties tend to have influence on the policies and decisions of the party. 4. The fourth challenge is that very often parties do not seem to offer a meaningful choice to the voters. 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 world. For example- The difference between the Labour Party and the Conservative Party in Britain is very little. They agree on more fundamental aspects but differ only in details on how policies are to be framed and implemented. 5. Not much difference between the leaders as well. They keep shifting from one party to another. (Any other relevant point)

8. Practice · 1 marks

   8. The cartoon below depicts Germany’s government that was formed after the 2005 elections. It included the two major parties of the country, namely the Christian Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party. The two parties are historically competing with each other. Which of the following options best explains the cartoon? Source-Democratic Politics, NCERT A. Coalition Government. B. Two Party System. C. Democratic government. D. Bi-party system.

   A – Coalition Government.

9. Very Important · 5 marks

   9. ‘Political parties play a significant role in the effective working of a democracy.’ Explain. OR 27B. Analyse how the issue of leadership succession poses a challenge to political parties in India.

   Political parties play a significant role in the effective working of a democracy. 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 the 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 easier to approach a local party leader than a government officer. (Any 5 points) OR 27B 1. 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. 2. 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. 3. 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. 4. This is so because people who do not have adequate experience or popular support come to occupy positions of power. 5. 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.

10. Practice · 1 marks

    10. A political party conducts regular elections, yet the same leaders continue to hold power for decades and key decisions are made by a small group. This situation best reflects: Choose the correct option- A. A federal party structure B. Lack of internal democracy C. Dynastic succession D. Strong ideological unity

    B. Lack of internal democracy

11. Very Important · 4 marks

    11. Read the given text and answer the following questions: Need for 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. At the same time, this visibility does not mean popularity. Most people tend to be very critical of political parties. They tend to blame parties for all that is wrong with our democracy and our political life. Parties have become identified with social and political divisions. Therefore, it is natural to ask if we need political parties at all? About a hundred years ago, there were few countries in the world that had any political party. Now there are few that do not have parties. Source- NCERT. Democratic Politics–II. Class X 28.1 Modern democracies cannot exist without political parties. Analyse the given statement by giving one reason to support your answer. 28.2 Highlight any two functions of a political party. 28.3 Why has India opted for a Multi-Party System? Give any one reason to support your answer.

    28.1. 1+2+1 1. Every candidate in the elections will be independent. So no one will be able to make =4 any promises to the people about any major policy changes 2. The government may be formed but: it’s utility will remain uncertain. Elected representatives will be accountable to their constituency for what they do in their locality. (Any one Point) 28.2 1. Contesting Elections: Parties select candidates and compete in elections, presenting different choices to voters. 2. Formulating Policies & Programmes:They put forward their ideologies as policies and programs for people to support. 3. Making Laws: Parties play a decisive role in debating and passing laws in the legislature. 4. Forming & Running Governments: The majority party forms the government and runs it, implementing its agenda. 5. Playing the Role of Opposition: Defeated parties act as opposition, criticizing government failures and holding it accountable. 6. Shaping Public Opinion: Parties highlight issues, raise public awareness, and influence how people think. 7. Providing Access to Government: They act as a link, helping citizens access government machinery and welfare schemes. (Any 2 point) 28.3 -India adopted a multi-party system primarily due to its vast social and geographical diversity, including different religions, cultures, languages, and regions, which couldn't be adequately represented by just one or two parties, ensuring broader voice, interests, and preventing power concentration in a single group, strengthening democracy.