Question

How do state or regional political parties contribute in strengthening federalism and democracy in India? Explain with examples.

Answer 1

There was a beginning of the era of COALITION GOVERNMENTS at the

Centre since 1990s. Since no single party got a clear majority in the Lok Sabha, the major national parties had to enter into an alliance with many parties including several regional parties to form a government at the Centre. This has led to a new culture of power sharing and respect for the autonomy of State Governments.

This trend was supported by a major judgement of the Supreme Court that made it difficult for the Central Government to dismiss state governments in an arbitrary manner. Thus, federal power sharing is more effective today than it was in the early years after the Constitution came into force.