Subject : Social Science (Democratic Politics)

Chapter 3 - Electoral Politics

Class : IX Div : _____
Name : ___________ Roll No.- ____ Date : 11.12.2021
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EXERCISE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS :

1. List all the different election-related activities mentioned in the chapter and arrange
them in a time sequence, beginning with the first activity and ending with the last. Some
of these activities are given below : releasing election manifestos; counting of votes;
making of voters’ list; election campaign; declaration of election results; casting of votes;
ordering of re-poll; announcing election schedule; filing nomination.

Answer: Making of voters’ list → Announcing election schedule → Releasing election

manifesto → Election campaign → Filing nomination → Casting of votes → Ordering of
re-poll → Counting of votes → Declaration of election results.

2. Surekha is an officer-in-charge of ensuring free and fair elections in an assembly

constituency in a state. Describe what should she focus on for each of the following stages
of election :
(a) Election campaign
(b) Polling day
(c) Counting day

Answer: (a) Election campaign - She will have to focus on various duties such as ensure
that candidates cannot bribe or threaten voters, expenditure limit is not crossed by a
candidate, candidates not appeal to voters in the name of religion or caste, they not use
worship place for a campaign or use any government resources.

(b) Polling day - She will have to cross check the voters’ list and check the ID proof of the
voters, booth capturing not taking place. Ensure that free and fair elections should be
conducted.

(c) Counting day - She has to look on when counting is carried out, representatives of all
parties present at the counting area in order to avoid malpractices.
3. The table below gives the proportion of different communities among the candidates
who won elections to the US Congress. Compare these to the proportion of these
communities in the population of the US. Based on this, would you suggest a system of
reservations in the US Congress? If yes, why and for which communities? If no, why not?

Answer: Blacks and Hispanics should be given reservation in the US Congress as per their
percentage in the US population.

4. Can we draw the following conclusions from the information given in this chapter? Give
two facts to support your position for each of these.

(a) Election Commission of India does not have enough powers to conduct free and fair
elections in the country.
Answer: The Election Commission of India is powerful enough to conduct free and fair
elections :
● It implements the code of conduct and punishes any candidate or party that
violates it.
● In Elections, Government officials work under the EC and not the government.

(b) There is a high level of popular participation in the elections in our country.
Answer: There is a high level of popular participation in the elections :
● Voter turnout has increased over the past years.
● Election-related activities in the last few years have seen larger participation by the
people.

(c) It is very easy for the party in power to win an election.

Answer: It is not very easy for the party in power to win an election :
● The ruling parties routinely lose elections.
● Candidates who are known to spend a lot of money often lose elections.

(d) Many reforms are needed to make our elections completely free and fair.
Answer: Certain Reforms are necessary to make our elections completely free and fair :
● To ensure that independents and small parties do not suffer in elections.
● To ensure candidates with criminal records do not participate.

5. Chinappa was convicted of torturing his wife for dowry. Satbir was held guilty of
practicing untouchability. The court did not allow either of them to contest elections. Does
this decision go against the principles of democratic elections?
Answer: This decision does not go against the principles of democratic elections. Any
person who is convicted for a crime has no right to remain a part of the society and hence
has no right to contest the election.
6. Here are some reports of electoral malpractices from different parts of the world. Is
there anything that these countries can learn from India to improve their elections? What
would you suggest in each case?

(a) During an election in Nigeria, the officer in charge of counting votes deliberately
increased the votes of one candidate and declared him elected. The court later found out
that more than five lakh votes cast for one candidate were counted in favour of another.
Answer: In this case, representatives of each candidate should be present to make sure
that the votes are counted in a fairway.

(b) Just before elections in Fiji, a pamphlet was distributed warning voters that a vote for
former Prime Minister, Mahendra Chaudhry will lead to bloodshed. This was a threat to
voters of Indian origin.
Answer: The election commission should set up an inquiry into the case and debar the
candidate or party involved in distributing such pamphlets.

(c) In the US, each state has its own method of voting, its own procedure of counting, and
its own authority for conducting elections. Authorities in the state of Florida took many
controversial decisions that favoured Mr. Bush in the presidential elections in 2000. But no
one could change those decisions.
Answer: There should be a single election commission which should be free from political
influence and should be responsible for conducting elections throughout the country.

7. Here are some reports of malpractices in Indian elections. Identify what the problem in
each case is. What should be done to correct the situation?

(a) Following the announcement of elections, the minister promised to provide financial
aid to reopen the closed sugar mill.
Answer: After the announcement of the election, it is not legal to announce policy
decisions according to the Code of Conduct. The minister should be immediately taken to
task by the Election Commission.

(b) Opposition parties alleged that their statements and campaign were not given due
attention in Doordarshan and All India Radio.
Answer: The election commission must ensure that all political parties are given equal
opportunity to appear on Doordarshan and All India Radio. EC takes action against the
misuse of this media.

(c) An inquiry by the Election Commission showed that electoral rolls of a state contain the
name of 20 lakh fake voters.
Answer: The presence of the fake voters means that the elections were rigged by the
authorities who prepared the electoral rolls. The election commission should supervise
the preparation of fresh electoral rolls.

(d) The hoodlums of a political party were moving with guns, physically preventing
supporters of other political parties from meeting the voters and attacking meetings of
other parties.
Answer: By using hoodlums, the political party is terrorizing its rivals. The election
commission should order the arrest of the hoodlums and bar the party from the elections.

8. Ramesh was not in class when this chapter was being taught. He came the next day and
repeated what he had heard from his father. Can you tell Ramesh what is wrong with
these statements?

(a) Women always vote the way men tell them to. So what is the point of giving them the
right to vote?
Answer: The statement is wrong because the policy of secret ballot ensures that an
individual can vote for whoever he/she wants. Women are fully capable of taking
decisions on their own and selecting the candidate they like.

(b) Party politics creates tension in society. Elections should be decided by consensus, not
by competition.
Answer: Competition works as both a deterrent and motivator for the political candidates.
Fear of losing the election and motivation for winning the elections works in favour of
people.

(c) Only graduates should be allowed to stand as candidates for elections.

Answer: Educational qualification is not required to understand the people’s needs, and to
represent their interests. Therefore, it is not necessary for politicians to be graduates.

EXTRA QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS :

Short Answer Type Questions :

1. What details are required from the candidates who wish to contest elections?
Answer: The candidates who wish to contest elections have to make a legal declaration,
giving full details of :
● Serious criminal cases pending against the candidate.
● Details of the assets and liabilities of the candidate and his or her family.
● Education qualifications of the candidate.
2. What are the two merits of electoral competition?
Answer: Two merits of electoral competition are :
● Political leaders all over the world, like all other professionals, are motivated by a
desire to advance their political careers.
● They want to come in power and retain positions for themselves. So they do their
best to win the hearts of people.

3. What are the choices generally a voter can make in an election?

Answer: In an election, the voters make the following choices :
● They can choose who will make laws for them.
● They can choose who will form the government and take major decisions.
● They can choose the party whose policies will guide the government and
law-making process.

4. What are the minimum conditions of a democratic election?

Answer: The minimum conditions of a democratic elections are :
● Everyone should be able to choose. This means that everyone should have one
vote and every vote should have equal value.
● There should be something to choose from. Parties and candidates should be free
to contest elections and should offer some real choice to the voters.
● The choice should be offered at regular intervals. Elections must be held regularly
after every few years.
● The candidate preferred by the people should get elected.
● Elections should be conducted in a free and fair manner where people can choose
them at their will.

5. What is the ‘Model code of Conduct’ for election campaigns?

Answer: According to the medal code of conduct, no party or candidate can :
● Use any place of worship for election propaganda. ‘
● Use government vehicles, aircrafts and officials for election.
● Once elections are announced, the Ministers shall not lay foundation stones of any
projects, take any big policy decisions or make any promises of providing public
facilities.

6. Why should elections be held regularly?

Answer: Elections should be held regularly because :
● Elections should be held regularly because it provides incentives to the political
parties and leaders.
● They know that if they raise-issues that people want to raise, it would make them
popular and increase their chances of victory in the next elections.
 ● But, if they fail to satisfy the voters with their work, they will not be able to win
again.

7. What are the demerits of an election competition?

Answer: An electoral competition has many demerits such as -
● It creates a sense of disunity and ‘factionalism’ in every locality.
● Different political parties and leaders often level allegations against one another.
● Parties and candidates often use dirty tricks to win elections.

8. Why is there a provision of reservation of seats in the legislatures?

Answer: i) The constitution makers were worried that in an open electoral competition,
certain weaker sections may not stand a good chance to get elected to the Lok Sabha and
State Legislative Assemblies.
ii) They may not have the required resources, education and contacts to contest and win
elections against the more influential and resourceful contestants. Hence, the seats are
reserved for them in the legislatures.

Long Answer Type Questions :

1. What are the challenges to free and fair elections in India?

Answer: i) The elections in India are basically free and fair. But, a few candidates may win
purely based on money power and unfair means. These challenges exist not just in India
but also in many established democracies. These deeper issues are a matter of concern for
those who believe in democracy. The challenges to free and fair elections in India are as
follows.
ii) Candidates and parties with a lot of money may not be sure of their victory but they do
enjoy a big and unfair advantage over smaller parties and independents.
iii) In some parts of the country, candidates with criminal connections have been able to
push others out of the electoral race and to secure a ‘ticket’ from major parties.
iv) Some families tend to dominate political parties; tickets are distributed to relatives
from these families.
v) Very often elections offer little choice to ordinary citizens, for both the major parties are
quite similar to each other both in policies and practice.
vi) Smaller parties and independent candidates suffer a huge disadvantage compared to
bigger parties.

2. How can you say that the outcome of elections is a final test of free and fair
elections? Explain.
Answer: One final test of the free and fair election was in the outcome itself. If elections
are not free or fair, the outcome always favours the powerful. In such a situation, the
ruling parties do not lose elections. Usually, the losing party does not accept the outcome
of a rigged election. The outcome of India’s elections speaks for itself :
● The ruling parties routinely lose elections in India both at the national and state
level. In fact, in every two out of the three elections held in the last fifteen years,
the ruling party lost.
● In the US, an incumbent or ‘sitting’ elected representative rarely loses an election.
In India, about half of the sitting MPs or MLAs lose elections.
● Candidates who are known to have spent a lot of money on ‘buying votes’ and
those with known criminal connections often lose elections.
● Barring very few disputed elections, the electoral outcomes are usually accepted as
‘people’s verdict’ by the defeated party.

3. What do you mean by Voters List? What is its significance?

Answer: In a democratic election, the list of those who are eligible to vote is prepared
much before the election and given to everyone. This list is officially called the Electoral
Roll and is commonly known as the Voters’ List.

The significance of Voter’s List is as follows :

● This is an important step for it is linked to the first condition of a democratic
election. Everyone should get an equal opportunity to choose representatives.
● In our country, all the citizens aged 18 years and above can vote in an election.
Every citizen has the right to vote, regardless of his or her caste, religion or gender.
● It is the responsibility of the government to get the names of all the eligible voters
put on the Voters List. As new persons attain voting age, names are added to the
voters’ list. Names of those who move out of a place or those who are dead are
deleted.
● A complete revision of the list takes place every five years. This is done to ensure
that it remains up to date. In the last few years a new system of Election Photo
Identity Cards (EPIC) has been introduced. The government has tried to give this
card to every person on the voters’ list. But the card is not yet compulsory for
voting. For voting, the voters can show many other proofs of identity like the ration
card or the driving licence.

4. Explain the role of the Election Commission in conducting the free and fair
elections.
Answer: The role of the Election Commission in conducting the free and fair elections is as
follows :
● The Election Commission takes decisions on every aspect of conduct and control of
elections from the announcement of elections to the declaration of results.
● It implements the Code of Conduct and punishes any candidate or party that
violates it.
 ● It allots election symbols to parties and independent candidates.
● During the election period, the Election Commission can order the government to
follow some guidelines, to prevent use and misuse of governmental power to
enhance its chances to win elections, or to transfer some government officials.
● When on election duty, government officers work under the control of the Election
Commission and not the government.

5. What are the changing trends of people’s participation in elections in India?

Answer: The changing trends of people’s participation in elections in India are as follows :
● People’s participation in elections is usually measured by voter turnout figures.
Turnout indicates the percent of eligible voters who cast their vote. In India, the
turnout figures over the last few decades have either remained stable or gone up.
● In India, the poor, illiterate and underprivileged people vote in larger proportion as
compared to the rich and privileged sections. This is in contrast to western
democracies.
● Common people in India attach a lot of importance to elections. They feel that
through elections, they can bring pressure on political parties to adopt policies and
programmes favourable to them.
● The interest of voters in election-related activities has been increasing over the
years. During the 2004 elections, more than one-third voters took part in a
campaign-related activity.
● More than half of the people identified themselves as being close to one or the
other political party. One out of every seven voters is a member of a political party.

6. What are the minimum conditions needed for a democratic election?

Answer: There are five minimum conditions needed for a democratic election. They are :
● Everyone should have the right to vote and every vote should have equal value.
● Parties and candidates should be free to contest elections and they should offer
some real choice to the voters.
● Elections must be held regularly .
● Candidates preferred by the people should be elected.
● Elections should be conducted in a free and fair manner.

7. Can elections be considered as competition ?

Answer: i) Elections can be considered as a competition. It is a political competition. The
competition is among political parties. At the constituency level, it is a competition among
several candidates. If there is no competition, elections will become pointless.
ii) An electoral competition also has many demerits . It creates a sense of disunity and
‘factionalism’ in every locality.
iii) Different political parties and leaders often level allegations against one another.
iv) Parties and candidates often use dirty tricks to win elections.
v) Some good people who may wish to serve the country do not enter this arena because
of this unhealthy competition.

8. What is our system of elections?

Answer: i) Elections for the Lok sabha are held every 5 years. After five years the term of
all the elected representatives comes to an end. The Lok Sabha stands ‘dissolved’.
ii) Elections for the Lok Sabha are held in all constituencies on the same day or within a
few days. This is called a general election.
iii) Sometimes elections are held only for one constituency to fill the vacancy caused by
death or resignation of a member. This is called a by-election.

9. What are electoral constituencies?

Answer: i) India is divided into different areas for the purposes of elections. These areas
are called electoral constituencies.
ii) We follow an area based system of representation.
iii) The voters who live in a particular constituency elect one person to represent their
constituencies.

10. How many constituencies do we have in India?

Answer: i) India is divided into 543 constituencies for Lok Sabha elections.
ii) The representative elected from each constituency is called a Member of Parliament.
iii) Similarly, each state is divided into a number of Assembly constituencies, depending on
its population and its size.
iv) The elected representative of the Assembly constituencies are called the Member of
Legislative Assembly or an MLA.
v) Each Parliamentary constituency has several Assembly constituencies .

11. What are Reserved Constituencies ?

Answer: i) Reserved Constituencies are constituencies that are set aside for certain weaker
sections of the society.
ii) Weaker sections of the society may not stand a good chance to get elected to the Lok
Sabha and the State Legislative Assemblies.
iii) They may not have the required resources, education and contacts to contest and win
elections against others.
iv) Those who are influential and resourceful may prevent them from winning elections.
v) As our Constitution entitles every citizen to elect its representative, Reserved
Constituencies are a necessity.

12. Who can vote and who cannot vote in India ?

Answer: i) In India, all the citizens above the age of 18 can vote in an election. They have
the right to vote, regardless of their caste, religion or gender.
iii) The government gets the names of all the eligible voters and prepares the voters’ list.
As new persons attain voting age names are added to the voters’ list.
iv) Names of those who move out of a place or those who are dead are deleted.
v) A complete revision of the list takes place every five years.
vi) Criminals and persons with unsound minds are denied the right to vote.

13. What should a citizen do if he or she wants to contest the elections?

Answer: Every person who wishes to contest an election has to fill a ‘nomination form’
and pay a ‘security deposit’. They are requested to present a declaration. The legal
declaration has to have the following details :
● Details of any serious criminal cases pending against them. (If applicable).
● Details of the assets and liabilities they have and that of their family members.
● Educational qualifications. This information will be made public. This provides an
opportunity to the voters to voice their objections, if any, and make the right
decision during elections.

14. What are the two methods of voting?

Answer: The two methods of voting are -
● The Ballot Paper : A ballot paper is a sheet of paper on which the names of the
contesting candidates along with their party name and symbols are listed. The
voters indicate whom they want to vote for by putting a stamp on the ballot paper.
● Electronic Voting : Electronic voting machines (EVM) are used to record votes. The
machine shows the names of the candidates and the party symbols. The voter has
to press the button corresponding to the name of the person he wants to vote for.
Then the vote gets registered automatically.
● Independent candidates too have their own symbols, allotted by election officials.
Voting is conducted in total secrecy.

15. Why do we need elections?

Answer: Elections are essential for any representative democracy. In an election the
citizens have many choices. They are :
● They can choose the people who will make laws.
● They can choose the government that will rule them.
● They can decide on the party whose policies they prefer.

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