{"id":341834,"date":"2025-07-01T22:40:03","date_gmt":"2025-07-01T17:10:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/?p=341834"},"modified":"2025-07-16T17:09:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-16T11:39:09","slug":"psir-power-50-day-25-capsule-party-system-practice-qs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/psir-power-50-day-25-capsule-party-system-practice-qs\/","title":{"rendered":"PSIR Power 50 \u2013 Day 25 Capsule: Party System+ Practice Qs"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Hello aspirants,<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s revision capsule of PSIR optional preparation covers<strong> Party System<\/strong>. There are <strong>four 20-markers, six 15-markers, and two 10-markers<\/strong> from this topic in the last 12 years. <strong>Party System practice question<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong> What a \u201cparty system\u201d means<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Definition<\/strong> \u2013 How many parties exist, how they team-up before\/after an election, who really governs.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Rajni Kothari<\/strong>: India\u2019s map of parties grew around a single \u201cpolitical centre\u201d forged in the freedom struggle.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Main types worldwide<\/strong>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>One-party<\/strong> (China): one legal party, no real rivals, strict rule.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Two-party<\/strong> (US, UK): two giants alternate, smaller ones survive on the edges.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Multi-party<\/strong> (India, much of Europe): many parties, often coalitions; can be <strong>unstable<\/strong> (India 1996-98) or <strong>working<\/strong> (when two big blocs behave like a pair of rivals).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"2\">\n<li><strong> Three phases of India\u2019s national party story<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<table class=\"table-responsive\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Phase<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Key traits<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Scholars \/ concepts<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>I. \u201cCongress System\u201d (1952-67)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Congress wins big with just 45-48 % votes; draws support from most castes, classes, regions.<\/td>\n<td>Rajni Kothari\u2019s \u201cdominant-party\u201d frame; Morris-Jones: \u201cdominance plus competition, no turnover\u201d.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>II. Break-up &amp; regional rise (1967-89)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Congress loses many states; 1977 Janata wave shows a non-Congress centre is possible; Mandal, farmers\u2019 parties (Charan Singh) push caste claims; party splits multiply.<\/td>\n<td>Kothari: decline of dominance. Morris-Jones: \u201cmarket polity\u201d.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>III. Coalition age &amp; two big poles (1989 <\/strong><strong>\u2192<\/strong><strong>)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Endless pre\/post-poll alliances; United Front (1996), NDA (1999), UPA (2004); by 2000s BJP vs Congress form twin power-poles.<\/td>\n<td>Ajay K Mehra: bi-nodal politics. Balveer Arora: \u201cfederalised\u201d party order. Chhibber &amp; Verma: fourth party system (BJP-centred) after 2014.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><em>2014-19<\/em>: BJP stretches across regions; 2019 locks in a <strong>new dominant-party era<\/strong>, Congress marginal, Left shrunk.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"3\">\n<li><strong> Why regional parties mushroomed<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Vidyut Chakraborty<\/strong> &amp; <strong>Surendra Mohan<\/strong>: Delhi ignored local identity, uneven growth; voters trusted nearby leaders more.<\/li>\n<li>Four usual demands: secession, separate state, more autonomy, or cultural\/economic safeguards.<\/li>\n<li>Two kinds: <strong>region-located<\/strong> (work only in one area) vs <strong>regionalist<\/strong> (also ask for looser Centre-State ties).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ol start=\"4\">\n<li><strong> Party families &amp; their social roots<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<table class=\"table-responsive\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Party family<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Main ideas<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Core voters \/ \u201csocial base\u201d<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Congress<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Democratic socialism, secularism; later liberal-market tilt.<\/td>\n<td>Early: upper-caste elites; post-freedom: a cross-caste \u201cumbrella\u201d, Dalits &amp; Muslims included.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Socialists<\/strong> (PSP, SSP, etc.)<\/td>\n<td>Democratic socialism, rural poor; fragmented.<\/td>\n<td>Workers, small peasants, lower middle class.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Communists (CPI, CPI-M)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Marxist-Leninist goal; \u201cpeople\u2019s democracy\u201d front; anti-imperialist.<\/td>\n<td>Workers, small farmers; strong in Kerala, WB, Tripura.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>BJP (Jan Sangh legacy)<\/strong><\/td>\n<td>Nationalism, \u201cpositive secularism\u201d, Gandhian socialism tag; today pro-market plus welfare.<\/td>\n<td>Upper-caste Hindus, traders; since 1990s wider OBC\/Dalit reach.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Regional parties<\/strong> (DMK, Akali Dal, TMC\u2026)<\/td>\n<td>State pride, language, culture, or caste focus; demand more state rights.<\/td>\n<td>Region-specific groups; can swing national coalitions.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"5\">\n<li><strong> Coalitions \u2013 how they work in India<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Forms<\/strong>: <em>parliamentary<\/em> (minority depends on outside help), <em>electoral<\/em> (seat-sharing deals), <em>governmental<\/em> (power-sharing cabinets, national-unity wartime cabinets).<\/li>\n<li>India\u2019s quirks (Lijphart, Yadav, others): many cross-cutting cleavages, First-Past-the-Post voting, and fragile parties make pre-poll tie-ups common.<\/li>\n<li><strong>BJP era<\/strong>: fewer big allies\u2014party now less dependent; Congress builds UPA blocs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"6\">\n<li><strong> Pressure (interest) groups \u2013 \u201cunofficial government\u201d (Richard D. Lambert)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Finer<\/strong>: thrive when parties are weak; act as \u201canonymous empire\u201d.<\/li>\n<li>Four kinds (Almond &amp; Powell):\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Institutional<\/strong> (bureaucracy, army).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Associational<\/strong> (business chambers, trade unions).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Non-associational<\/strong> (castes, language blocs).<\/li>\n<li><strong>Anomic<\/strong> (flash mobs, riots).<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<li>Difference from parties: seek to <em>influence<\/em> rather than <em>capture<\/em> power; from lobbying: lobbying is just one tactic.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"7\">\n<li><strong> Who gets elected? \u2013 changing MLA\/MP profile<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>1950s-60s<\/strong>: mostly Brahmin, lawyer-heavy, foreign-educated.<\/li>\n<li><strong>1967-89<\/strong>: rise of OBCs, small farmers; politics as full-time job.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Post-1990<\/strong>: younger, more OBC\/Dalit, but also more criminal cases; women inch up (still ~14 % LS2024).<\/li>\n<li><strong>2019 LS<\/strong>: average age 54, education a bit lower than 2014; mixed careers (agrarian, business, social work).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"8\">\n<li><strong> Voting behaviour \u2013 what shapes the Indian voter?<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Traditional pulls<\/strong>: caste, religion, cash, charisma (e.g. \u201cGaribi Hatao\u201d, \u201cModi-Modi\u201d), campaign blitz, manifestos.<\/li>\n<li><strong>New trends<\/strong> (CSDS, PRS, Verma &amp; Yadav):\n<ul>\n<li>Turnout high; gender gap closing; poorer citizens vote more.<\/li>\n<li>Voters judge jobs, prices, welfare delivery\u2014<strong>performance matters<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>Women, urban youth show stronger independent choices; social media widens information.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<li>Scholars: <strong>Harold Lasswell<\/strong>\u2014politics = who gets what, when, how; <strong>Sudipta Kaviraj<\/strong> on India choosing democracy over pure growth.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ol start=\"9\">\n<li><strong> take-aways<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>From Congress-led umbrella to BJP-centric pole<\/strong> \u2013 India shifted from one dominant party to two competing coalitions, then to a new BJP-led dominance.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Regional forces keep Centre honest<\/strong> \u2013 Federalised party map means Delhi must still bargain with states.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Coalition craft is now routine statecraft<\/strong> \u2013 seat-shares, CMPs, and outside support define stable class=&#8221;table-responsive&#8221;class=&#8221;table-responsive&#8221;rule.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Citizens are less captive to caste scripts<\/strong> \u2013 welfare, leadership trust and nationalism now mingle with identity cues.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Pressure groups, media and courts<\/strong> add extra \u201csafety nets\u201d in policy battles.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><em>Democracy in India thus stays lively: messy, multi-layered\u2014but remarkably resilient.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><u>\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>Scholars Index<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>Gabriel Almond\u2002|\u2002Balveer Arora\u2002|\u2002Vidyut Chakraborty\u2002|\u2002Pradeep Chhibber\u2002|\u2002Samuel E. Finer\u2002|\u2002Sudipta Kaviraj\u2002|\u2002Rajni Kothari\u2002|\u2002Richard D. Lambert\u2002|\u2002Harold Lasswell\u2002|\u2002Arend Lijphart\u2002|\u2002Ajay K. Mehra\u2002|\u2002Surendra Mohan\u2002|\u2002W. H. Morris-Jones\u2002|\u2002G. Bingham Powell\u2002|\u2002Rahul Verma\u2002|\u2002Yogendra Yadav<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>\u00a0<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong><u>Practice Questions<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Question 1<\/strong><strong>.<\/strong> <strong>Political personalities are more significant than political parties in India. Discuss.<\/strong> <strong>[2018\/10 m]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Question 2. <\/strong><strong>The decade 1989-1999 has created an epochal shift in the Indian party system at the national level. Identify the major national trends in the party system during this era. [2023\/15 m]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Question 3. <\/strong><strong>The Indian party system is shaped by a complex interaction of the country&#8217;s federal structure, electoral system and social cleavages.\u201d Explain. [2021\/20m]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\ud83d\udccc <em>Model answers drop this evening on the Telegram channel:<\/em> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.me\/psirbyamitpratap\"><strong>https:\/\/t.me\/psirbyamitpratap<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 keep notifications on.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>See you tomorrow on Day 26. Keep practicing!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u2014<strong>Amit Pratap Singh &amp; Team<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>A quick note on submissions of copies and mentorship<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>2025 Mains writers<\/strong>: <strong>Cohort 1 of O-AWFG<\/strong> started on <strong>12 June<\/strong> and <strong>ATS<\/strong> on <strong>15 June<\/strong>. The above practice set will serve as your <em>revision tool<\/em>, just <strong>do not miss booking your mentorship sessions<\/strong> for personalised feedback especially for starting tests. Come with your evaluated test copies.<\/li>\n<li><strong>2026 Mains writers &#8211; <\/strong>keep uploading through your usual dashboard. Act on the feedback and improve consistently.<\/li>\n<li>Alternate between mini-tests <strong>(O-AWFG)<\/strong> and full mocks <strong>(ATS)<\/strong> has been designed to tackle speed, content depth, and structured revision\u2014line-by-line evaluation pinpoints your weaknesses and errors. Follow your <strong>PSIR O-AWFG &amp; ATS <\/strong>schedule and use the model answers to enrich your content, as rankers recommended based on their own success.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hello aspirants, &nbsp; Today\u2019s revision capsule of PSIR optional preparation covers Party System. There are four 20-markers, six 15-markers, and two 10-markers from this topic in the last 12 years. Party System practice question &nbsp; \u00a0 What a \u201cparty system\u201d means Definition \u2013 How many parties exist, how they team-up before\/after an election, who really&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/psir-power-50-day-25-capsule-party-system-practice-qs\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">PSIR Power 50 \u2013 Day 25 Capsule: Party System+ Practice Qs<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10394,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12128,9],"tags":[12012,12133],"class_list":["post-341834","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-psir-optional","category-public","tag-psir-forumias","tag-psir-optional","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","views":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341834","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10394"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=341834"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/341834\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=341834"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=341834"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=341834"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}