Explain briefly any three major challenges faced by the political parties in India.
Answers
Economic issues like poverty, unemployment, development are main issues that influence politics. Garibi Hatao (eradicate poverty) has been a slogan of the Indian National Congress for a long time. The well known Bharatiya Janata Party encourages a free market economy.
Answer:
CHALLENGES TO POLITICAL PARTIES
All over the world, people are dissatisfied with the performance of the political parties. This is the case in our country too. Popular dissatisfaction and criticism have focussed on four problem areas in the working of political parties. Political parties need to face and overcome these challenges.
FIRST CHALLENGE: LACK OF INTERNAL DEMOCRACY WITHIN PARTIES
In most of the political parties, the power is concentrated in the hands of one or a few leaders at the top. Ordinary members of the party do not get sufficient information about the happenings inside the party. The leaders assume greater power to make decisions in the name of the party.
SECOND CHALLENGE: DYNASTIC SUCCESSION
The top positions in many political parties are generally controlled by members of one family. Leaders on the top have an unfair chance of favouring their families and friends. This is also for democracy, since people who do not have adequate experience or popular support, come to occupy positions of power.
THIRD CHALLENGE: MONEY AND MUSCLE POWER
This is a prominent challenge to political parties during elections. Since parties are focussed only on winning elections, they tend to use shortcuts to win elections. Such shortcuts include the following:
1 They tend to nominate those candidates who have or can raise lots of money. Rich people and companies who give funds to the parties tend to influence the policies and decisions of the party.
2 In some cases, parties support criminals who can win elections.
FOURTH CHALLENGE: MEANINGFUL CHOICE TO THE VOTERS
It states that very often parties do not seem to offer a meaningful choice to the voters. To offer meaningful choices, parties must be significantly different. For example, in our country too, the differences among all the major parties on the economic policies have reduced. Those who want different policies have no option available to them.