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Class 12 Political Science|Chapter 10|Era of One-Party Dominance|ASSEB
VERY SHORT ANSWER
Q. 1. When was the Indian Constitution enforced?
Ans: The Indian constitution was legally enforced on 26 January, 1950.
Q. 2. Why did the leaders of many other countries decide that India could not afford to have democracy?
Ans: The leaders of many other countries decided that India could not afford to have democracy because it got independence in some difficult circumstances. They say that national unity was the first priority and that democracy will introduce differences and conflicts.
Q. 3. When was the Election Commission formed in India?
Ans: In India, the Election Commission was formed in January 1950.
Q. 4. Who was the first Chief Election Commissioner?
Ans: Mr Sukumar Sen was the first Chief Election Commissioner.
Q. 5. Why did Election Commission cancel the first voter list?
Ans: Election Commission cancelled the first voter list because nearly 40 lakhs women were not recorded in the list.
Q. 6. Name the full form of E.V.M.
Ans: The full form of E.V.M. is Electronic Voting Machine.
Q. 7. In which year was the first general election held?
Ans: In 1952, the first general election was held.
Q. 8. How many terms did the Congress get majority to form government?
Ans: The Congress got majority to form government for three consecutive terms.
Q. 9. What percentage of votes did the Congress obtain in 1952 Lok Sabha Election?
Ans: In 1952 Lok Sabha Election Congress obtained 45% of votes.
Q. 10. When was the Congress Socialist Party formed?
Ans: The Congress Socialist Party was formed in 1934.
Q. 11. Who was the founder of P.R.I.?
Ans: Plutarco Elias Calles was the founder of P.R.I.
Q. 12. Mention two countries in which their Constitution has permitted only a single party.
Ans: In countries like China and Cuba, their Constitution has permitted only a single party.
Q. 13. Who was the chairman of drafting committee of constituent assembly?
Ans: Dr. Bhim Rao Ramji Ambedkar was the chairman of the drafting committee of the constituent assembly.
Q. 14. In which country did the Bolshevik Revolution take place?
Ans: Bolshevik Revolution took place in Russia.
Q. 15. When was Bharatiya Jana Sangh formed?
Ans: Bharatiya Jana Sangh was formed in 1951.
Q. 16. Who was the founder President of Bharatiya Jana Sangh?
Ans: The founder President of Bharatiya Jana Sangh was Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.
Q. 17. When was Swatantra Party formed?
Ans: Swatantra Party was formed in August 1959.
Q. 18. What did the Swatantra Party want from the government?
Ans: The Swatantra Party wanted from the government to be less and less involved in controlling the economy.
Q. 19. What will happen to the grass when two buffaloes fight?
Ans: When two buffaloes fight, the grass under them gets crushed.
Q. 20. Choose the correct option to fill in the blanks:
(a) The first general election in 1952 involved simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and ___.
Ans: State Assemblies.
(b) Towards the end of ___ the Election Commission started using the Electronic Voting Machine.
Ans: 1990.
(c) The Congress Socialist Party was formed within the Congress in ___ by a group of young leaders who wanted a more radical and egalitarian Congress.
Ans: 1948.
Q. 21. Under what conditions did the Indian party system originate?
Ans: Indian party system originated during the freedom struggle.
Q. 22. When was the Congress Party founded in India and by whom?
Ans: The Congress Party was founded in 1885; it was founded by A.O. Hume.
Q. 23. Who led the Indian National Congress in the first general election?
Ans: Jawaharlal Nehru led the Indian National Congress in the first general election.
Q. 24. Mention one characteristic of the party system in India.
Ans: Indian party system is characterized by absence of strong opposition party.
Q. 25. When was Indian Constitution enforced?
Ans: Indian Constitution was enforced on 26th January, 1950.
Q. 26. In 1957 which party formed the government in Kerala?
Ans: The Communist Party formed government in Kerala in 1957.
Q. 27. In which year was Socialist Party formed?
Ans: In 1934 Socialist Party was formed.
Q. 28. In which party lie the roots of Bharatiya Janata Party?
Ans: The roots of Bharatiya Janata Party lie in Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
Q. 29. In which year did the era of one party dominance begin?
Ans: In 1952 the era of one party dominance began.
Q. 30. Which Indian party is the oldest party in Asia?
Ans: Indian National Congress is the oldest party in Asia.
Q. 31. Who was Deen Dayal Upadhyaya?
Ans: Deen Dayal Upadhyaya was the founder member of Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
Q. 32. Who was the founder of Independent Labour Party in India?
Ans: B.R. Ambedkar was the founder of Independent Labour Party in India.
Q. 33. In which year was the Nagpur session held?
Ans: 1920 Nagpur session was held.
Q. 34. Fill in the blanks:
(a) One of the guiding principles of the ideology of the Swatantra Party was ___.
Ans: Individual Freedom.
(b) The party that won the second largest number of Lok Sabha seats in the first election was the ___.
Ans: Communist Party.
SHORT ANSWER
Q. 1. On which date was the draft of the Indian Constitution signed and when it came into force?
Ans: The draft of Indian Constitution was signed on 26th November 1949 and it came into force on 26th January 1950.
Q. 2. Why did socialists criticise the Congress?
Ans: The socialists criticised the Congress for favouring capitalists and landlords and for ignoring the workers and peasants.
Q. 3. What is the full form of RSS? What is the name of the Founder President?
Ans: The full form of RSS is Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. The Founder President of RSS is K.B. Hedgewar.
Q. 4. When was CPI party formed? Name one personality who led this party.
Ans: The CPI party was formed in the early 1920’s taking inspiration from the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. One famous personality who led this party was A.K. Gopalan.
Q. 5. When was the Election Commission of India formed? Who was the first Election Commissioner?
Ans: The Election Commission was formed in January 1950. Sukumar Sen was the first Election Commissioner.
Q. 6. The two things of a candidate were carried in the ballot paper, what were these two things?
Ans: The two things of a candidate carried in a ballot paper were the name of the candidate and the party to which they belong.
Q. 7. When did the central government dismiss the communist government in Kerala and under which article of the Constitution?
Ans: In 1959 the Congress government at the centre dismissed the communist government in Kerala under Article 356 of the Constitution.
Q. 8. Name the two countries which have experienced the dominance of one party.
Ans: Countries like Syria and Cuba experienced the dominance of one party.
Q. 9. In which year was the first general election held in India?
Ans: In India the first general election was held in the year 1952.
Q. 10. Which period of election has been described as the Congress system?
Ans: The period 1952–1962 of election has been described as the Congress system.
Q. 11. When was the Bharatiya Jana Sangh formed and who was the founder president of the party?
Ans: Bharatiya Jana Sangh was founded in 1951. Deen Dayal Upadhyay was the founder president of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
Q. 12. When was Congress Party founded in India and by whom?
Ans: Congress Party was formed in 1885 and A.O. Hume was the founder of the party.
Q. 13. Write names of two leaders of Socialist Party.
Ans: Jay Prakash Narayan and Ashoka Mehta.
Q. 14. Mention the era of one party dominance in India.
Ans: From 1952–1967.
Q. 15. Mention any two ideologies of Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
Ans:
(i) One country and one nation.
(ii) Integrated and Modern India.
Q. 16. Give the names and symbols of any two national parties in India.
Ans:
| Party | Symbol |
|---|---|
| (i) Indian National Congress | Hand |
| (ii) Bharatiya Jana Sangh | Lotus |
Q. 17. List the basic requirements to hold free and fair election in a country like India.
Ans: Two basic requirements for free and fair election:
(a) To prevent the corrupt and criminals from contesting elections.
(b) To aware the voters about their political rights and duties.
Q. 18. Who were the main leaders of CPI?
Ans: A.K. Gopalan, S.A. Dange, P.C. Joshi, Ajoy Ghosh.
Q. 19. Under what conditions did the Indian party system originate?
Ans: Indian party system was originated in the conditions of national movement.
Q. 20. List two States where Congress was not in power at some point of time during 1952–1967 election.
Ans: Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Q. 21. Fill in the blanks:
(a) The first general elections in ___ involved simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and ___.
Ans: 1952, Assembly election.
(b) In ___ the Congress government at the centre dismissed the communist government in ___.
Ans: 1957, Kerala.
LONG ANSWER
Q. 1. What kind of step did the Election Commission of India take for holding election?
Ans: The Election Commission of India took some important steps for holding election in India.
These steps are like:
(i) Election Commission wanted to conduct a free and fair election in the country, but which still needed delimitation or drawing the boundaries of electoral constituencies.
(ii) It also prepared the electoral rolls, on the list of all citizens eligible to vote.
(iii) When the first draft was published it was discovered that the names of 40 lakhs women were not recorded in the list. The Election Commission refused to accept these entries and ordered a revision if possible or deletion if necessary.
(iv) The Election Commission emphasised on some special method of voting. For this reason they trained over 3 lakh officers and polling staff to conduct the election.
Q. 2. Why did an Indian editor call the election the biggest gamble in history?
Ans: Indian editor called the election the biggest gamble in history because the first general election held in India was the first big test of democracy in a poor and illiterate country. Till then democracy had existed only in the prosperous countries, mainly in Europe and North America, where nearly everyone was literate. By that time many countries in Europe had not given voting rights to all women. In this context India’s experiment with universal adult franchise appeared very bold and risky.
Q. 3. Who was B.R. Ambedkar? For whom did he fight?
Ans: Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was the leader of anti-caste movement and the founder father of Independent Labour Party. He was the chairman of drafting committee of the constituent assembly. He became the Minister in Jawaharlal Nehru’s first cabinet after independence.
For his whole life Dr. B.R. Ambedkar fought for the Dalits, labours and the people belonging to Scheduled Castes.
Q. 4. Explain the view of the communist groups on India’s freedom struggle.
Ans: The view of the communist groups on India’s freedom struggle was not very positive. The basic question that troubled the party was the nature of Indian Independence. They thought that the transfer of power in 1947 was not to independence and encouraged violent uprisings in Telangana. The communists failed to generate popular support for their position and were crushed by the armed forces. This forced them to rethink their position. In 1951 the Communist Party abandoned the path of violent revolution and decided to participate in the approaching general elections.
Q. 5. Explain briefly why we call the Congress Party as the centre of Indian politics.
Ans: Congress was the only grassroots organisation which existed at the time of existence. Its federal structure had the basis of internal democracy. It inherited a vast and enriched legacy from the national struggle. It gave its goodwill and from that it could grow political mileage. The Congress was able to dominate because it was able to adjust to local circumstances. The internal democracy in the party and electoral gains of Congress helped Congress to adjust to changes in local balance of power. Congress had emerged as a pressure group of intellectuals, professionals and communal classes in the 20th century. The party possessed a very broad-based manifesto which comprised something or the other for every section of society. For all these reasons we call the Congress Party as the centre of Indian politics.
Q. 6. When was the Congress Party founded in India and by whom?
Ans: A.O. Hume founded the Congress Party in 1885.
Historical background: The Congress has passed through different phases from being a platform of loyalist reformers, as a forum of enlightened professionals for the articulation of demands and for negotiating greater participation of Indians in the legislatures and local bodies. Under Gandhi, it became a multi-class mass movement. After independence the Congress became a dominant ruling party.
Q. 7. How many national and state parties were there at the time of first general election?
Ans: There were 6 national political parties and 47 state parties at the time of first general election.
Q. 8. Explain the policies and programmes of the left parties.
Ans: Left parties believe in communist ideology and principles. Left parties give importance to protect the rights of labour and farmers. Left parties oppose inequality and exploitation of the rich over the poor. Left parties favour equal distribution of resources.
Q. 9. Write any four reasons for the emergence of the coalition era in the Indian democratic system.
Ans: The four factors for the emergence of coalition government in India:
(i) End of Congress dominance.
(ii) Rising regional political association.
(iii) Presence of communal political party.
(iv) Increasing strength of the Dalits and other backward class political parties.
Q. 10. Write any four features of Indian party system.
Ans: Four characteristics of Indian party system:
(a) Multi-party system.
(b) Emergence of regional political parties.
(c) One party dominance.
(d) Lack of strong opposition political party.
Q. 11. How do you describe the nature of the party system of India?
Ans: The three vital factors that determine the pattern of Indian party system are:
(i) A major heritage of the national movement was the building of national consensus on certain essential issues of the three significant dimensions of national interest, namely national unity and political integration, national defence and security.
(ii) The other heritage of the national movement was its broad ideological base coalescing the many stands from the radical left to the conservative, traditional right. The coexistence of the left, centre and the right in the national movement during the freedom struggle not only gave it a wider support base and provided it with all-India legitimacy, but also laid down a tradition of toleration and accommodation of different points of view.
(iii) The continental size of the country comprising well defined and distinct socio-cultural regions, with their own languages and dialects, specific patterns of caste, community and tribal formations, provided the objective conditions for the rise of regional parties and groups.
Q. 12. Write any four reasons for domination of one party system in India.
Ans: Four reasons for domination of one party system in India:
(i) Indian National Congress was the first and oldest party enjoying supremacy over other parties.
(ii) Indian National Congress Party is the largest party having wide organised party network all over India.
(iii) Indian National Congress led the freedom struggle and won independence for India.
(iv) There is lack of well organised strong opposition political party in India.
Q. 13. List the aims and goals of Socialist Party of India. Why did the party not prove itself as an effective alternative to the Congress?
Ans: The origin of the Socialist Party can be traced back to the mass movement stage of the Indian National Congress in the pre-independence era. The socialists believed in the ideology of democratic socialism which distinguished them from both the Congress as well as the communists. They criticised the Congress for favouring capitalists and landlords and for ignoring the workers and the peasants.
Congress Socialist Party was formed within the Congress in 1934 by a group of young leaders who wanted a more radical and egalitarian Congress. In 1948, the Congress amended its constitution to prevent its members from having dual party membership. This forced the socialists to form a separate Socialist Party in 1948. The party’s electoral performance caused much disappointment to its supporters. Although the party had presence in most of the states of India it could achieve electoral success only in a few pockets.
But the socialists faced a dilemma when in 1955 the Congress declared its goal to be the socialist pattern of society. Thus it became difficult for the socialists to present themselves as an effective alternative to the Congress. Some of them led by Rammanohar Lohia, increased their distance from and criticism of the Congress Party. Some others like Ashoka Mehta advocated a limited cooperation with the Congress.
The Socialist Party went through many splits and reunions leading to the formation of many socialist parties. This included the Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party, the Praja Socialist Party and Samyukta Socialist Party. Jayaprakash Narayan, Achyut Patwardhan, Ashoka Mehta, Acharya Narendra Dev, S.M. Joshi, Rammanohar Lohia were among the leaders of the Socialist Party. Many parties in contemporary India, like Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Janata Dal (United) and Janata Dal (Secular) trace their origin to the Socialist Party.
Q. 14. “Opposition is divided house in India” – Explain.
Ans: An effective, responsible and responsive opposition is the hallmark of a democracy and the lifeblood of a competitive party system.
A descriptive note on role of opposition in a democracy is cited below –
(i) Criticise the ruling party: The opposition acts like a restraining force as it represents legitimate dissent. It is as much the duty of the opposition to criticise as that of the government to govern. The opposition criticises and exposes the mistakes, shortcomings, failures, lapses etc. of the ruling party and thus acts like a necessary corrective to it.
(ii) Ventilate the grievances of the people: The opposition has to ventilate the grievances of the people and helps the government to know their views. In this way, they help in the formulation of policy by drawing the attention of the government to the situations where there are grave violations.
(iii) Expression of views: Several committees are appointed by the legislature for its better working. In these committees the opposition gets adequate representation and also a chance to scrutinise and express its views on various issues. Many a times, they oppose issues and ventilate their viewpoint. They thereby also educate the people.
(iv) Act as alternative form of government: The opposition also acts like an alternative government or as the government in waiting when the government collapses before its five-year term. If the opposition expresses its inability to do so, then there would be mid-term elections.
Q. 16. Say True or False:
(a) At the time of our general election in the year 1952 there were 14 national parties.
Ans: False.
(b) Dr. B.R. Ambedkar adopted Buddhism in 1956.
Ans: True.
(c) India has a multi-party system.
Ans: True.
(d) Shyama Prasad Mukherjee was the founder president of Communist Party of India.
Ans: False.
(e) In the first general election the Indian National Congress was led by Lal Bahadur Shastri.
Ans: False.
(f) The Swatantra Party was formed in 1955.
Ans: False.
Q. 17. Mention the names of four political parties which were established before independence.
Ans: The political parties which were established before independence are:
(i) Indian National Congress.
(ii) Communist Party.
(iii) Muslim League.
(iv) Socialist Party.
VERY LONG ANSWER
Q. 1. Explain briefly the history of elections held in 1952.
Ans: The first general election was held in 1952, which is regarded as a landmark in India.
The history behind it is like:
(i) The election was held in a very competitive situation; there were on an average more than 4 candidates for each seat.
(ii) The level of participation was encouraging — more than half the eligible voters turned out to vote.
(iii) When the results were declared, these were accepted as fair even by the losers.
(iv) In the first general election more than half of Indian population was illiterate, still the election took place smoothly.
(v) The Indian experiment proved the prophets wrong who thought that Indian democratic experiment would prove to be a failure.
(vi) Moreover, a free and fair election was conducted and women got a chance to vote too. It became a milestone in the history of democracy all over the world. It was no longer possible to argue that democratic elections could not be held in conditions of poverty or lack of education. It proved that democracy could be practiced anywhere in the world.
Q. 2. Discuss the National Revolutionary Party.
Ans: National Revolutionary Party founded in 1929 exercised power in Mexico for almost six decades. Later it was renamed as the Institutional Revolutionary Party — the P.R.I. (in Spanish). It represented the legacy of the Mexican Revolution; originally P.R.I. was a mixture of various interests including political and military leaders, labour and peasant organisations and numerous political parties. Over a period of time, Plutarco Elias Calles, the founder of P.R.I., was able to capture the organisation and thereby the government.
Elections were held at regular intervals and it was the P.R.I. which won every time — other parties existed only for namesake. Electoral laws were operated in such a manner that only P.R.I. won the elections. Elections were often rigged and manipulated by the ruling party. Its rule was described as “the perfect dictatorship” and finally the party lost in the Presidential elections held in 2000.
Mexico is no longer a one-party dominated country. But the tactics adopted by the P.R.I. during the period of its dominance had a long-term effect on the health of democracy. The citizens have yet to develop full confidence in the free and fair nature of elections.
Q. 3. Explain the Congress dominance in the first three general elections.
Ans: The Indian National Congress held unique political accomplishments. The Congress dominated the Indian political scenario from 1947–1967.
The factors responsible for its dominance are:
(i) Legacy of National Struggle: The Congress Party had inherited a vast and enriched legacy from the nationalist struggle. It gave its goodwill and political mileage. Party leaders like Nehru and Shastri were quite popular for spending years in jail and for the other deprivations they endured. The legacy of the nationalist movement helped in forging coherence and unity in the wake of the party’s internal pluralism.
(ii) Grassroot Organisation: Congress was the only grassroot organisation which existed at the time of existence. Its federal structure had the basis of internal democracy. This helped it to resolve internal feuds and cement party cohesion. Internal party elections served as means of legitimising party leadership and training party workers in the skill of political competition.
(iii) Adjustment to Local Circumstances: The Congress was able to dominate because it was able to adjust to local circumstances. The erstwhile landed aristocracy competed for power within the Congress. The internal democracy in the party and electoral gains of Congress helped it to adjust to changes in local balance of power. Further, the broad base allowed Congress even to incorporate successful opposition leaders within its fold.
(iv) Attract New Supporters: With the expansion of development role of the state, resources which could be disbursed to party members also increased. The growing pool of resources and opportunities enhanced the ability of Congress to adjust conflicts among its members. The party reaped benefits of a virtuous cycle in which the electoral gains provided it access to politico-economic resources to garner new supporters.
(v) Limited Role of Opposition: From 1947 to 1967 we see a very limited role played by the opposition political parties. The opposition was not able to unite against the Congress because of internal differences within the socialist fold, reservations of CPI, presence of dynamic leaders like Nehru in the Congress, the inability of the opposition to provide collective leadership, and lack of clarity of thought and approach among them.
(vi) Management: The Congress possessed strong managerial skills. It could easily tackle the differences that cropped up within the various factions of the Congress Party. The rivalries and differences were dealt with great technique and patience. This allowed the Congress to remain as a grand centrist party which facilitated the party to win elections term after term.
Q. 4. When was the Bharatiya Jana Sangh formed? Discuss its ideology.
Ans: Bharatiya Jana Sangh was founded in 1951 with Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee as its founder president.
Its main ideology are:
(i) The Jana Sangh emphasised the idea of one country, one culture and one nation.
(ii) It believed that the country could become modern, progressive and strong on the basis of Indian culture and traditions.
(iii) The party called for a reunion of India and Pakistan in Akhand Bharat.
(iv) The party was in the forefront of the agitation to replace English with Hindi as the official language of India and also opposed granting concessions to religious and cultural minorities.
(v) The party was a consistent advocate of India developing nuclear weapons especially after China carried out its atomic tests in 1964.
In the 1950s Jana Sangh remained at the margins of electoral politics and was able to secure only three Lok Sabha seats in 1952 election and four seats in 1957 general election. The support base centred around the urban areas of Hindi-speaking states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. The party’s initial leaders included Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya and Balraj Madhok. The Bharatiya Janata Party traces its roots to the Bharatiya Jana Sangh.
Q. 5. Explain briefly the Swatantra Party.
Ans: The Swatantra Party was formed in August 1959 after the Nagpur Resolution of the Congress which called for land ceilings, takeover of foodgrain trade by the state and adoption of cooperative farming. The party was led by old congressmen like C. Rajagopalachari, K.M. Munshi, N.G. Ranga and Minoo Masani. The party stood out from the others in terms of its position on economic issues.
The Swatantra Party was against land ceilings in agriculture and opposed cooperative farming and state trading. It was also opposed to the progressive tax regime and demanded dismantling of the licence system. It was critical of the policy of non-alignment and maintaining friendly relations with the Soviet Union, and advocated closer ties with the United States.
The Swatantra Party wanted the government to be less and less involved in controlling the economy. It believed that prosperity could come only through individual freedom. It was critical of the development strategy of state intervention in the economy, centralised planning, nationalisation and the public sector. It instead favoured expansion of a free private sector.
The Swatantra Party gained strength in different parts of the country by way of merger with numerous national parties and interests. It attracted landlords and princes who wanted to protect their land and status that were being threatened, and business classes who were against nationalisation and the licensing policy also supported the party. Its narrow social base and the lack of a dedicated cadre of party members did not allow it to build a strong organisational network.
Q. 6. Describe the origin and split of Communist Party of India.
Ans: The Communist Party of India was formed in early 1920. The Communist Party of India was founded taking inspiration from the Bolshevik Revolution in Soviet Russia. The aim of the party was to free India from British colonial rule. However, in 1964 the Communist Party was divided into two separate parties — the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India. Again in 1969 another Communist Party emerged — the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist).
Q. 7. Write a note on the emergence of opposition party in India.
Ans: Same as Ans of Q. No. 15 (Long Answer).
Q. 8. Give the comparative analysis of the nature of Congress dominance.
Ans: The Indian National Congress held unique political accomplishments. The Congress dominated the Indian political scenario from 1947–1967.
The factors responsible for its dominance are:
(i) Legacy of National Struggle.
(ii) Grassroot Organisation.
(iii) Adjustment to Local Circumstances.
(iv) Attract New Supporters.
(v) Limited Role of Opposition.
(vi) Management.
(Same as the answer of Q. No. 3 – Very Long Answer)
Q. 9. What is a dominant party system? Give an example of such a system.
Ans: One party dominance means a situation where many political parties contest, but only one political party gets absolute majority almost in every election. India is one example of a dominant party system. Though many political parties contest the elections both at centre and states, it was till 1967 that only Congress won the elections. That is why some thinkers opined that Indian party system is one party dominance system.
Q. 10. Discuss the uneven trend of Congress party at the state level.
Ans: Same as Ans of Q. No. 3 (Very Long Answer).
Q. 11. Write a short note on political parties before independence.
Ans: The first political party of India was established in 1885. It was formed by a European. The name of the party is Indian National Congress which was established by A.O. Hume. In 1906 another political party was established. The name of the party was Muslim League. Then in 1924 Communist Party was established. Again in 1934 Swatantra Party was formed.
Q. 12. Find out the ideological difference between Bharatiya Jana Sangh and Communist Party of India.
Ans: Differences between Socialist Party and Communist Party are:
(a) The Socialists believed in the ideology of democratic socialism whereas Communist Party worked mainly within the fold of the Congress Party.
(b) The Socialists believed in peaceful constitutional methods, while Communist Party believed in peaceful and violent methods.
(c) The Socialists criticised the Congress for favouring capitalists and landlords and ignoring the working class and farmers. The Communist Party believed in the welfare of workers and peasants.
Differences between Bharatiya Jana Sangh and Swatantra Party –
(a) Bharatiya Jana Sangh believed in the ideology of ‘one country, one nation, one culture and one national ideal’; on the other hand, the Swatantra Party believed in equality of opportunity for all people without distinction of religion, caste, race, etc.
(b) Bharatiya Jana Sangh stands for the nationalisation of basic defence industries but does not favour the policy of taking more and more industries under state ownership and control because it believes that this tendency is harmful both for democracy and economic development. Swatantra Party stands for the principle of maximum freedom for the individual and minimum interference by the state.
(c) Jana Sangh favours following the policy of non-alignment with the two power blocs as also of non-involvement in international affairs not directly affecting India. Swatantra Party was critical of the policy of non-alignment and advocated closer ties with USA.
