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What is a Multi-Party System?
How a multi-party system works
Several parties
contest elections
Diverse voices
and interests
People choose
those they consider suitable
↓
Real choice for the voter
- A system in which several political parties contest elections.
- They represent diverse voices and interests .
- This gives people the power to choose those they consider most suitable.
What are examples of political parties in India?
- There are many political parties in India.
- Some of them are:
- Bharatiya Janata Party
- Indian National Congress
- Bahujan Samaj Party
- Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- National People's Party
- Aam Aadmi Party
- Party names are not in the NCERT chapter.
- Added only as examples.
How is the election winner decided?
![Multi-Party System - Democracy - [Teachoo] - Concepts](https://cdn.teachoo.com/a3aff72d-1d6c-43eb-a52c-19a53e460afe/counting-votes.jpg)
Counting votes
Who forms the government?
in Parliament or State Assemblies
More than 50% of seats
A party, or a coalition of parties
Example:
forms the GOVERNMENT
Largest opposing group
Questions the government
Example:
becomes the OPPOSITION
- In elections to the Parliament or State Assemblies :
Group
What it becomes
The party securing
more than 50 per cent of the seats
Forms the
government
The
largest opposing group
Becomes the
opposition
- The opposition questions the government and offers an alternative.
What if a single party does not get a majority?
- Then a coalition of parties can form the government.
- The chapter says the party or a coalition of parties that secures more than 50 per cent of the seats forms the government.
What is a coalition?
When no party wins a majority
No single party
crosses 50 per cent
Two or more parties
join together
↓
Together they reach the majority and form the government
- Coalition means two or more parties joining together to reach the majority needed to form a government.
- No single party has enough seats alone, so they agree to govern together.
Coalitions in India
- India has seen coalition governments at the national level since the 1990s.
- Two well-known alliances are the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) , formed in 1998, and the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) , formed in 2004.
- Alliances are not in the NCERT chapter, and their membership changes over time.
- Use them only as examples of what a coalition is.
Which law governs political parties?
- Parties function within the framework of rules and regulations laid down by the Representation of the People Act, 1951 .
What do multiple political parties represent?
- A wide range of interests:
- socio-cultural
- political
- ideological
- regional
- This reflects the diversity of Indian society .
1. What is a multi-party system?
Show answer
A system in which several political parties contest elections, representing diverse voices and interests, giving people the power to choose those they consider most suitable.
2. What share of seats is needed to form the government?
Show answer
More than 50 per cent of the seats.
3. What is a coalition?
Show answer
Two or more parties joining together to secure a majority and form the government, when no single party has enough seats alone.
4. What kinds of interests do political parties represent?
Show answer
Socio-cultural, political, ideological and regional interests - reflecting the diversity of Indian society.
5. Which Act lays down the rules and regulations for political parties?
Show answer
The Representation of the People Act, 1951.
