Passage Based Questions: Recent Developments in Indian Politics | Political Science Class 12 - Humanities/Arts PDF Download

Passage -  1

Direction: Study the cartoon given below and answer the following questions:

(i) Identify four national leaders from the cartoon and mention their serial numbers.
Ans.
1 – Rajiv Gandhi
2 – V. P. Singh
3 – L. K. Advani
4 – Devi Lal
5 – Jyoti Basu
6 – Chandra Shekhar
7 – N. T. Rama Rao
8 – P. K. Mahanto
9 – K. Karunanidhi
(Any four to be identified)

(ii) What was the most controversial issue related to leader no. 2 during his tenure as Prime Minister of India?
Ans. Implementation of the Mandal Commission’s recommendations.

(iii) What was the position of the party led by leader no. 1 in the Lok Sabha elections of 1989?
Ans. The party was badly affected in 1989 and could not secure a clear majority, reducing from 415 to 145 seats.

Passage -  2

Direction: Read the passage given below carefully and answer the questions that follow:

‘Party politics in India has confronted numerous challenges. Not only has the Congress system destroyed itself, but the fragmentation of the Congress coalition has triggered a new emphasis on self-representation which raises questions about the party system and its capacity to accommodate diverse interests. An important test facing the political system is to evolve a party system or political parties that can effectively articulate and aggregate a variety of interests.’ — Zoya Hasan

(i) Write a short note on the challenges faced by the party system as described by the author.
Ans. The author highlights challenges related to coalition governments and the fragmentation within the Congress party, which have triggered a new focus on self-representation. This situation raises questions about the party system's ability to accommodate and integrate diverse interests.

(ii) Provide an example from the chapter illustrating the lack of accommodation and aggregation mentioned in the passage.
Ans. An example is the formation of political parties under Kanshi Ram's leadership specifically for Dalits, which demonstrates the difficulty in accommodating diverse interests within the party system.

(iii) Why is it important for parties to accommodate and aggregate a variety of interests?
Ans. It is essential for parties to accommodate and aggregate a variety of interests to maintain India's culture of 'Unity in Diversity' and to prevent the emergence of separatist movements.

Passage - 3

Direction: Read the passage given below carefully and answer the questions that follow:

With the elections of 1989, a long phase of coalition politics began in India. Since then, there have been nine governments at the Centre, all of which have either been coalition governments or minority governments supported by other parties that did not join the government. In this new phase, any government could be formed only with the participation or support of many regional parties. This applied to the National Front in 1989, the United Front in 1996 and 1997, the NDA in 1997, the BJP-led coalition in 1998, NDA in 1999, and the UPA in 2004.

(i) When did the trend of coalition politics begin?
Ans. 1989

(ii) Name any two regional political parties that were part of a coalition government.
Ans. NDA, United Front

(iii) What is the full form of NDA?
Ans. National Democratic Alliance

(iv) What does a minority government mean?
Ans. Minority governments are supported by other parties which do not formally join the government.