Political Parties Class 10 Notes CBSE Political Science (Civics) Chapter 6

Why do We Need Political Parties?

• They are bodies that help in the successful implementation of the ideals and principles of democracy.

• They are a group of people, sharing similar ideals, come together to contest elections and hold a powerful position in the government.

• They are the fundamental political division and have leaders, active members and followers.
  
  

Functions:

• In most democracies, political parties are the primary way to contest elections. The political parties put up candidates that are elected to form a government. The members of the party choose the person who needs to represent the party during elections.

• Parties present their common ideologies as different policies and programs.

• Parties play a primary role in making laws and policies for the country.

• They are the primary units that form and run a government. 

• The parties that lose from the opposition government and keep a check on the government in control and power.

• They also play a major role in shaping public opinion and provide access to the government machinery.
  
  

Necessity

• This provides the election procedure a shape and procedure. If political parties were absent every person would be independent and no proper policy decision could be made. 

• The elected person would be held responsible for the local area but for the whole country, no proper government would be present.

• During panchayat elections too the village gets split up na deach puts forth a panel of its candidates.
  
  

How Many Parties Should We Have?

• There are basically three types of party systems: one-party system, two party and multiparty system.

• In many countries, only one party is allowed to control and run the government but it’s not a democratic option since there is no fair chance provided.

• In two party system the power exchanges between two parties. Other parties can be present too but they are not provided majority share in legislation. Example: United Kingdom

• In multi-party system, more than two parties have a reasonable chance of coming to power either on their own strength or alliance with other parties. In India, there were three such major alliances in 2004 parliamentary elections– the National Democratic Alliance, the United Progressive Alliance and the Left Front. Example: India
  
  

National Political Parties

• 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
  
  

State Parties

• Other than the six state parties, the rest of the parties are classified as ‘State parties’ by the Election Commission. They are also referred to as regional parties. 

• Parties like the Samajwadi Party, Samata Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal have national level political organisations with units in several states. Some of these parties like Biju Janata Dal, Sikkim Democratic Front and Mizo National Front are conscious about their State identity.

• Since 1996, nearly every one of the State parties has got an opportunity to be a part of one or the other national level coalition government.
  
  

Challenges to Political Parties

• There is a lack of internal democracy within parties and the power tends to concentrate in hands of one or few leaders within the party. There are few parties that are able to organised meetings with all the members of the party and hence ordinary members don’t get access to what’s happening within the party.

• Since parties aren’t transparent with their procedures, it’s impossible for ordinary members to rise to the top. Only members who are close to the leaders or members owning authority have advantage over others.

• There has also been an increase in misuse of money and muscle power which diverts the attention to just winning instead of following the principles of democracy.

• The parties don’t offer a meaningful choice to the citizens. Often only famous and popular members are represented and many principles and promises are the same or presented with slight variation. 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.
  
  

How Can Parties Be Reformed?

• In a recent amendment, an elected MLA or MP cannot change party or else they would lose their seat in the legislature.

• The Supreme Court has reduced the use of money and criminals in elections by making it compulsory for every candidate to file an affidavit providing details of his property and criminal cases pending against him.

• It is compulsory for parties to hold organisational elections and file their income tax returns.

• It should be made mandatory for political parties to provide tickets to a minimum reservation of oppressed classes.

• The elections should be state funded and the support could be provided in form of petrol, cash, paper etc.
  
  

Class 10 Political Science Chapter 6 Political Parties - Summary

Class 10 Political Science Chapter 6 Political Parties discusses the nature and working of political parties, especially in countries like India. Political Party is a group of people who come together to go for elections and hold power in the government. Political Parties are a part of our society and thus involve “Partisanship”. The Political Parties are known by what it stands for, which policies the parties support, and whose interests they uphold. Political Parties are required to fulfil a different range of functions. They are an important part of modern democracies. It is of utmost importance to have political parties in different countries as the parties coordinate politicians, mobilise voters, shape identities and collaborate across borders.

Key Benefits of Class 10 Revision Notes For Political Science (Civics) Chapter 6

1. Students will get a brief overview of all the important topics of the chapter.

2. Studying through the notes will help students of Class 10 during revision before the exam.

3. When students go through these notes instead of reading through the entire chapter, it will help them save their time during exam preparation.

4. Students will be able to recall all the important topics of the chapter by referring to these notes even before the exam.

What do You Mean by a Political Party?

A political party is a congregation of people who collectively participates in elections and exercises the power in the government.

Need for Political Parties

To answer the question why do we need political parties, we have to know the actual meaning of a political party. As discussed above when an assembly of people come together to participate in elections and hold power in the government it is called a political party. They come together with an agenda of some policies and programmes for the sake of society with an aim to endorse collective good. A political party is divided by three mechanisms:

• The Leaders.

• The dynamic members.

• The followers.

These components of political parties hold good for all of the countries in the world.

Functions of Political Parties

The primary functions of political parties are the filling of political offices and exercising of political power. The functions of political parties include the following:

• Elections are contested by the political parties.

• Various policies and agendas are promoted by the political parties chosen by the voters.

• Political parties play a quintessential role in structuring the laws of for a country.

• Government is run and formed by the parties.

• The losing side in the election plays the role of the opposition party in the Parliament or Legislative Assemblies. Opposition parties play a crucial role in the context of the role of political parties in India through raising voice against the political parties in power.

• Public viewpoints are shaped by political parties.

• One of the major functions of political parties is that people get access to the mechanisms and social welfare systems executed by the Government through the political parties.

The list of regional parties in India with symbols is given in the following table.

Regional Political Parties in India with Their Symbols and Leaders: will be updated soon

Did You Know?

There are several challenges which the political parties have to face in India. The challenges are as follows:

1. There is an insufficient level of internal democracy within the parties. There is an absence of regular conduction of internal elections, lack of organizational meetings and membership registers.

2. Functions of political parties are not always open and transparent. For this purpose, an ordinary worker cannot hold the post at the highest level. In most of the cases, the highest position of a particular political party is acquired by the members of one particular family.

3. The never-ending role of money and muscle power is one of the major challenges faced by political parties.

4. Sometimes it is very difficult for people to select one particular political party due to several issues.

Key Benefits of Class 10 Revision Notes For Political Science (Civics) Chapter 6

1. Comprehensive Overview: Access a concise summary covering all vital topics within the chapter.

2. Effective Revision Aid: These notes serve as valuable study aids for Class 10 students, facilitating efficient revision before exams.

3. Time-Saving Approach: By using these notes, students can optimize their exam preparation time, avoiding the need to read the entire chapter.

4. Enhanced Recall: The notes aid in recalling crucial chapter topics, enabling students to reinforce their understanding well in advance of exams.

Download Class 10 Democratic Politics Chapter 6 - Political Parties Notes

Students can download Class 10 Democratic Politics Revision Notes for all chapters free pdf through the links below.

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 1 Notes 

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 2 Notes 

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 3 Notes 

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 4 Notes 

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 5 Notes 

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 6 Notes 

• CBSE Class Political Science Chapter 7 Notes 

Related Links

• CBSE Class 10 Political Science Notes

• CBSE Class 10 Social Science Revision Notes