NCERT Book Class 9 Social Science (Civics) Chapter 3 Electoral Politics

CHAPTER 3

Electoral
Politics

OVERVIEW
In Chapter 1 we have seen that in a democracy it is neither possible nor
necessary for people to govern directly. The most common form of
democracy in our times is for the people to govern through their
representatives. In this chapter we will look at how these representatives
are elected. We begin by understanding why elections are necessary and
useful in a democracy. We try to understand how electoral competition
among parties serves the people. We then go on to ask what makes an
election democratic. The basic idea here is to distinguish democratic
elections from non-democratic elections.
The rest of the chapter tries to assess elections in India in the light of
this yardstick. We take a look at each stage of elections, from the drawing
of boundaries of different constituencies to the declaration of results. At
each stage we ask what should happen and what does happen in elections.
Towards the end of the chapter, we turn to an assessment of whether
elections in India are free and fair. Here we also examine the role of the
Election Commission in ensuring free and fair elections.

34 DEMOCRATIC POLITICS