Question

What is a coalition government? List the merits and demerits of this type of government for a country like India?

Answer 1

A coalition government is the one in which two or more parties cooperate to form an alliance.The dominance of any one party is reduced in such an alliance.This occurs when no party gets a clear majority of votes in the elections. For example, the UPA government, which was in power from 2004 to 2014.

The merits of a coalition government are as follows:
1. The alliance of regional and national parties helps to serve diverse interests of people from every region.
2. It creates stakeholders from all sections of society in national progress and is inclined to govern through consensus.

The demerits of a coalition government are as follows:
1. A difficult situation arises when any decision has to be taken. This is because every party has to be consulted before a decision is taken.
2. The consideration of interests of every party creates rift between them. If one party withdraws from the alliance, the government may fall. Often, it leads to pressure tactics and blackmailing if interests of two groups clash with each other.