Electoral Politics

This civics chapter explains how elections work in a representative democracy. It opens with the 1987 Haryana Assembly election, in which Chaudhary Devi Lal's Lok Dal promised to waive farmers' loans and won 76 of the 90 seats, showing how voters can change a government. You will learn why elections are needed, what makes an election democratic, such as universal adult franchise, free and fair polls, real choice and regular elections, and why political competition, though it has demerits, makes leaders serve the people. You will study the Indian electoral system: general elections to the Lok Sabha every five years, the division of the country into constituencies, reserved constituencies for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, the voters' list, nomination of candidates and security deposits, election campaigns and the Model Code of Conduct, polling with electronic voting machines and counting. You will learn the role of the independent Election Commission, the high level of popular participation, especially among poorer voters, and the challenges of money power and candidates with criminal records.

Detailed Worksheet: Electoral Politics Section A - Definitions (10 marks) 1. What is an election? Why do we need elections in a democracy? (2 marks) 2. What is a constituency? What is a reserved constituency? (2 marks) 3. What is the voters' list or electoral roll? What is the Elector's Photo Identity Card? (2 marks) 4. What is the Model Code of Conduct? Give two of its rules. (2 marks) 5. What is meant by the incumbent? What is rigging? (2 marks) Section B - Calculations and Applications (15 marks) 6. In the 1987 Haryana election, the Lok Dal and its partners won 76 of the 90 seats. Find the percentage of seats won. How many more seats than a simple majority is this? (3 marks) 7. A constituency has 18,00,000 registered voters. In an election, 11,70,000 votes are cast. Find the voter turnout. If the winner gets 5,20,000 votes, what percentage of the votes cast did he get? (3 marks) 8. A Lok Sabha candidate must deposit Rs 25,000 as security, and a candidate from the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes pays half this amount. A candidate loses the deposit if he gets less than one-sixth of the votes polled. In a constituency where 9,00,000 votes were polled, what is the minimum number of votes needed to save the deposit? What is the deposit for an SC candidate? (3 marks) 9. Out of 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, 84 are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 47 for Scheduled Tribes. Find the percentage of reserved seats, correct to one decimal place, and the number of general seats. (3 marks) 10. Arrange the stages of an election in the correct order: counting of votes, announcement of the election schedule, filing of nominations, campaigning, polling, scrutiny and withdrawal of nominations, declaration of results. (3 marks) Section C - Diagrams (10 marks) 11. Draw a flowchart showing the stages of the electoral process in India, from preparation of the voters' list to the declaration of results. (4 marks) 12. Draw a chart showing the powers of the Election Commission of India. (3 marks) 13. Draw a bar graph showing voter turnout in four Lok Sabha elections: 2009: 58%, 2014: 66%, 2019: 67%, 2024: 66%. Write one conclusion. (3 marks) Section D - Analysis and Higher-order Thinking (15 marks) 14. What makes an election democratic? Explain five conditions with examples from India. (5 marks) 15. Explain the merits and demerits of political competition during elections. (5 marks) 16. Explain why Indian elections are considered largely free and fair. Also discuss three challenges to free and fair elections in India and suggest reforms. (5 marks) Instructions: Time allowed 2 hours. Attempt all sections. Show working in data-based questions and use examples from Indian elections.