NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Political Science Chapter 2 Era of One-party Dominance
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Era of One-party Dominance Class 12 Political Science II Textbook NCERT Solutions will provide you with a lot of interesting topics to dig into. You can easily pass exam with good marks if you follow the instructions and give full focus.
Chapter 2 Era of One-party Dominance Class 12 Political Science II NCERT Solutions
Exercises
1. Choose the correct option to fill in the blanks.
(a) The First General Elections in 1952 involved simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and ……………… (The President of India/ State Assemblies/ Rajya Sabha/ The Prime Minister)
(b) The party that won the second largest number of Lok Sabha seats in the first elections was the………………… (Praja Socialist Party/ Bharatiya Jana Sangh/ Communist Party of India/Bharatiya Janata Party)
(c) One of the guiding principles of the ideology of the Swatantra Party was………………… (Working class interests/ protection of Princely States / economy free from State control / Autonomy of States within the Union)
Solution
(a) State Assemblies
(b) Communist Party of India
(c) economy free from State control
2. Match the following leaders listed in List A with the parties in List B.
| List A | List B |
| (a) S. A. Dange | i. Bharatiya Jana Sangh |
| (b) Shyama Prasad Mukherjee | ii. Swatantra Party |
| (c) Minoo Masani | iii. Praja Socialist Party |
| (d) Asoka Mehta | iv. Communist Party of India |
Solution
| List A | List B |
| (a) S. A. Dange | iv. Communist Party of India |
| (b) Shyama Prasad Mukherjee | i. Bharatiya Jana Sangh |
| (c) Minoo Masani | ii. Swatantra Party |
| (d) Asoka Mehta | iii. Praja Socialist Party |
3. Four statements regarding one- party dominance are given below. Mark each of them as true or false.
(a) One-party dominance is rooted in the absence of strong alternative political parties.
(b) One-party dominance occurs because of weak public opinion.
(c) One-party dominance is linked to the nation’s colonial past.
(d) One-party dominance reflects the absence of democratic ideals in a country.
Solution
(a) True
(b) True
(c) False
(d) True
4. If Bharatiya Jana Sangh of the Communist Party of India had formed the government after the first election, in which respects would the policies of the government have been different? Specify three differences each for both the parties.
Solution
If Bharatiya Jana Sangh had formed the government after the first election, the policies of the government would have been different:
- Bharatiya Jana Sangh was against the English and this party would have replaced English with Hindi as the official language of India.
- The country would have become modern, progressive, and strong based on Indian culture and traditions.
- The concept of Akhand Bharat was focused on reunifying India and Pakistan.
If Communist Party of India had formed the government after the first election, the policies of the government would have been different:
- Communist Party of India would have preferred English as the official language of India.
- It would have followed the policy of socialism and nationalisation.
- The focus was on controlling electronic mass media by an independent body or corporation.
5. In what sense was the Congress an ideological coalition? Mention the various ideological currents present within the Congress.
Solution
The Congress party did not rise to political power solely as a political party, but as a movement advocating for independence and reform. It welcomed individuals with varying ideologies, including revolutionaries and pacifists, conservatives and radicals, extremists and moderates, as well as those on the political spectrum from the right, left, and center. All types of people with diverse interests became the members of the Congress party. Peasants and landlords, Industrialists and workers, urban elite and village, capitalists and poor, upper caste and lower castes persons etc. all were within the Congress. In essence, the Congress party represented a coalition of different ideologies.
In pre-independence days, many organisations and parties with their own constitutions and organisational structures were allowed to exist within the Congress. Some of these like “Congress Socialist Party” later seperated from the Congress and became on opposition party.
6. Did the prevalence of a ‘one-party dominant system’ affect adversely the democratic nature of Indian politics?
Solution
The prevalence of a one-party dominant system did not affect adversely the democratic nature of Indian politics because the dominance of the Congress party in India had not happened in compromising democracy. It had happened under democratic conditions. Many parties contested elections in conditions of free and fair elections and yet the Congress managed to win elections as the key role of Congress in the freedom struggle gave it a head start over others. Also, the Congress accommodated diversified interests, religion, beliefs and aspirations to strengthen democracy. Congress party consisted of various factions inside itself, based on ideological considerations who never taught together or went out of Congress.
7. Bring out three differences each between Socialist parties and the Communist party and between Bharatiya Jana Sangh and Swatantra Party.
Solution
Differences between Socialist parties and the Communist party
| Socialist parties | The Communist party |
| The socialist believed in the ideology of democratic socialism. | The communist party worked mainly within the fold of the congress party. |
| The socialist believed in peaceful constitutional methods. | The communist party believed in peaceful as well as violent methods. |
| The Socialist criticized the congress for favouring capitalist and landlord and ignoring the working class and farmers. | The communist party believed in the welfare of the workers and the peasants. |
Differences between Bharatiya Jana Sangh and Swatantra Party
| Bharatiya Jana Sangh | Swatantra Party |
| Bhartiya Jana Sangh believed in the ideology of the ‘one party, one nation, one culture and one national ideal. | Swatantra party believed in the equality of opportunity for all people without any distinction of religion, caste, class, race, etc. |
| Bhartiya Jana Sang stands for the nationalism of basic and defence industries but it does not favour the policies of taking more and more industries under state ownership and control because it believes that this tendencies 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. |
| Bhartiya Jana Sangh favours to follow the policy of Non-Alignment with the two power blocs as also of Non-involvement in the international affairs not directly affecting India. | Swatantra Party was critical of the policy of Non-Alignment and advocated close ties with the USA. |
8. What would you consider as the main differences between Mexico and India under one party domination?
Solution
In India, the Congress party dominated the political landscape in India through popular consensus, while the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in Mexico ruled through what was often referred to as a “perfect dictatorship.” India held free and fair elections in which even the losing party accepted the results as legitimate. However, in Mexico, elections were based on malpractices, dominated by PRI.
9. Take a political map of India (with State outlines) and mark :
(a) two states where congress was not in power at same point during 1952-67.
(b) two states where the congress remained in power through this period.
Solution
(a) Two states where Congress was not in power at some point during 1952-1967 – Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir.
(b) Two states where the Congress remained in power through this period – Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.
10. Read the following passage and answer the questions below :
” Patel, the organisational man of the congress, wanted to purge the congress of other political groups and sought to make of it a cohesive and disciplined political party . He … sought to take the Congress away from its all-embracing character and turn it into a close-knit party of disciplined cadres . Being a ‘realist’ he looked more for discipline than for comprehension . while Gandhi took too romantic view of “carrying on the movement,” Patel’s idea of transforming the congress into strictly political party with a single ideology and tight discipline showed an equal lack of understanding of the eclectic role that the congress, as a government, was to be called upon to perform in the decades to follow.” – Rajni Kothari
(a) Why does the author think that Congress should not have been a cohesive and disciplined party?
(b) Give some examples of the eclectic role of the Congress party in the early years.
(c) Why does the author say that Gandhi’s view about Congress future was romantic?
Solution
(a) Due to her desire to change the Congress into a tight-knit party of disciplined caders from its all-embracing character.
(b) The Congress party served as a diverse social coalition, representing the wide range of castes, religions, and languages present in India. It acted as a platform for numerous groups, interests, and even political parties to participate in the national movement.
(c) The author suggests that Gandhi’s view of Congress’s future was “romantic” because he believed in the party’s ability to continue as an all-embracing movement that included various groups, interests, and political parties. It did not fully appreciate the realities that Congress would face as a governing party in the years ahead.