Era of One Party Dominance Notes in English class 12 Political Science Chapter-2 Book-POLITICS IN INDIA SINCE INDEPENDENCE

 

Chapter - 2 

 period of one-party dominance 

Challenges in building democracy in India

• India got independence under difficult circumstances. 

• The challenge of nation-building was before the country since the time of independence    

• Our leaders were aware of the crucial role of politics in democracy. They did not see politics as a problem, they considered politics as a solution to the problem.  

• The leaders of our country gave importance to democracy and a democratic system was established in India since independence

• Our Constitution was adopted on 26 November 1949 and signed on 24 January 1950 .

• It was expected that the country's first general election would be held sometime in 1950 , but in those turbulent times, demarcation of constituencies and preparation of voter lists was not easy. 

constitution of india was made	26 November 1949
The Constitution of India came into force	26 January 1950
election commission formed	in the 1950s
first election commissioner	Sukumar Sen
Present Chief Election Commissioner	Mr. Rajeev Kumar

1. Problem before the Election Commission 

• Conducting free and fair elections.

• Demarcation of constituencies.

• Obstacles in the way of preparing voter list.

• Training of officials and election workers.

• Thinking of a special method of voting due to low literacy.

2. First General Election- ( 1951-1952)

• The first general elections were held from October 1951 to February 1952 .

• India decided to conduct elections based on universal adult suffrage

• The elections had to be postponed twice but were finally held from October 1951 to February 1952 .  

• This election is called the election of 1952 because voting took place in most parts of the country in 1952 itself. 

• The election campaign , polling and counting took a total of six months. 

• This experiment of universal suffrage silenced the critics. 

3. Reaction of critics 

Before the polls 

1. One Indian editor considered it "the biggest gamble in history." The Organiser magazine wrote that Jawaharlal Nehru "would regret and see in his lifetime that universal suffrage failed in India."  
2. A British representative of the Indian Civil Service claimed that "future, and a much more informed generation, will view with astonishment this absurd spectacle of millions of illiterate people voting."

After the polls 

1. The Times of India considered the elections "convincing." The elections "convinced all the doubts of critics who had seen the introduction of universal suffrage as a risky proposition for the country." Observers outside the country were also surprised.  
2. Hindustan Times – " It is being acknowledged everywhere that the Indian people have successfully carried out the biggest experiment of democracy in the history of the world." The general election of 1952 proved to be a milestone in the history of democracy all over the world. Now it is not possible to argue that democratic elections cannot be held in an environment of poverty or illiteracy. It has been proved that democracy can be implemented anywhere in the world.

The first three general elections

1. Congress in the first three general elections 

First general election 1952	Second General Election   1957	Third General Election     1962
Congress won 365 seats	Congress won 371   seats	Congress won 361  seats

Reasons for the dominance of Congress in the first three general elections

• The biggest party and the oldest party in the country

• The strongest organization 

• The most popular leaders were involved in this 

• The legacy of freedom was inherited 

• Support for all classes 

• Charismatic leaders like Nehru were included in this  

• The nature of taking everyone along 

2. Opposition in the first three general elections  

• In the first general election, the Communist Party came second, winning 16 seats 

• In the elections held in Kerala in 1957 , Congress lost and Communist Party won 60 out of 126 seats.

• In the 1957 elections, the Communist Party formed a coalition government in Kerala state and E.M.S. Namboodiripad became the CM there.

• But the central government misused Article 356 in 1959 and dismissed the Communist Party government which was opposed by the leaders there.

 

Nature of Congress dominance  

1. Congress is characterized by one-party dominance 

• India is not the only country that has gone through a period of one-party dominance. 

• There are many examples of dominance of one party in many countries of the world. 

• There is a difference between the dominance of one party in other countries and the dominance of one party in India. 

• In the rest of the countries, dominance of one party was established at the cost of democracy. 

• The constitution of some countries, such as China , Cuba and Syria, allows only one party to rule the country. 

• In Myanmar , Belarus and Eritrea, one-party dominance has been established through legal and military measures.  

• Until a few years ago, Mexico , South Korea and Taiwan were also one-party dominated countries. 

• The dominance of one party in India is very different from these examples. Here the dominance of one party was established in democratic conditions. 

• Many parties competed against each other in an environment of free and fair elections and yet the Congress Party continued to win one election after another. 

2. Congress as a social and ideological coalition 

1. Social alliance 

• The congress was formed in 1885 by the AOHUME . 

• At that time it was merely an interest group of the newly educated , working and business classes , but in the 20th century it took the form of a mass movement. 

• Because of this, Congress took the form of a mass political party and it established its dominance in the political system. 

• In the beginning, the Congress was dominated by the English speaking , upper caste , upper middle class and urban elite.

• When the Congress launched movements like Civil Disobedience, its social base expanded; the Congress brought together many groups with conflicting interests.  

• Farmers and industrialists , city dwellers and village residents, labourers and owners, middle, lower and upper classes and castes all got a place in the Congress. Gradually the leadership of the Congress also expanded.  

• Its leadership was no longer confined to professionals from the upper class or caste. Leaders with a background in agriculture and those inclined towards rural development also emerged in it.  

• By the time of independence, the Congress had taken the form of a colourful social alliance and this social alliance was representing the diversity of India on the basis of class , caste , religion , language and other interests.

• Many times it also happened that a group did not identify itself with the Congress and continued to remain within the Congress as an individual or a group following their own beliefs.

2. Ideological alliance

• The Congress was also an ideological coalition. 

• The Congress accommodated within itself revolutionaries and pacifists , conservatives and radicals , extremists and moderates , rightists , leftists and centrists from every stream. 

• The Congress was like a platform on which many groups , interests and even political parties gathered and participated in the national movement. 

• Before independence, many organizations and parties were allowed to be in the Congress.

3. Harmony and tolerance among groups 

• Congress used to include everyone in its organization, due to this strategy the opposition got into trouble  

• If the opposition said something, that opinion would find a place in the Congress. This would lead to disputes as well as tolerance in the party.  

• Even if a party was unhappy with getting a share in power, it would still remain in the party 

• There were various groups within the Congress party called factions and the Congress was tolerant due to its coalition nature 

Emergence of opposition parties

1. Role of politics

• There were opposition parties in India but they did not get a majority like the Congress. Many of these parties were formed much before the general elections of 1952 .  

• Some of them played an important role in the country's politics in the ' sixties ' and ' seventies ' . 

• Almost all non-Congress parties of today can trace their roots to one or the other opposition party of the 1950s .

• In the 1950s all these opposition parties got only nominal representation in the Lok Sabha or the Vidhan Sabha. Nevertheless , the presence of these parties played a decisive role in maintaining the democratic character of our governance system.

2. Role of the opposition 

• These parties criticized the policies and practices of the Congress Party.

• Opposition parties kept the ruling party in check and due to these parties the balance of power within the Congress Party changed. 

• These parties kept alive the possibility of a democratic political alternative. 
  

• These parties produced such leaders who played an important role in shaping the image of our country in the future.

• In the initial years, there was a deep feeling of mutual respect between the leaders of the Congress and the opposition parties.

3. Important opposition leader 

• After independence, the interim government took over the governance of the country. Its cabinet included opposition leaders like Dr. Ambedkar and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.  

• Jawaharlal Nehru often expressed his love for the Socialist Party. He invited socialist leaders like Jayaprakash Narayan to join the government.  

• This kind of personal relationship and respect for one's political opponent steadily declined as party competition intensified.

Major opposition parties 

1. Socialist Party 

• The Socialist Party was formed in 1934 by young leaders within the Congress 

• In 1948 , Congress amended its party constitution and abolished dual membership 

• That's why the socialists formed the Socialist Party in 1948 

• This party did not get much success in the elections

• Its founder was Acharya Narendra Dev 

thinking 

• belief in socialism 

• Criticized the Congress 

• It is said that Congress is a party of the rich and the capitalists.

• Congress is not working for the welfare of the poor  

2. Communist Party of India 

• Several communist groups emerged in India in the 1920s 

• It was influenced by the Russian Revolution 

• He wanted to solve the country's problems through the path of communism 

• He worked within the ambit of Congress till 1935 . 

• In December 1941 , he broke away from the Congress. 

thinking 

• Independence of 1947 is not real independence 

• This party promoted violent rebellion in Telangana 

• The government had to suppress their movement with the help of army 

• In 1951 , he abandoned the path of violent revolution 

• Won 16 seats in the first election 

• Supported States - Andhra Pradesh , West Bengal , Bihar , Kerala  

3. Swatantra Party 

4. Bharatiya Jana Sangh Party 

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