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Political participation

Political participation is a necessary ingredient of every political system. All political systems encourage political participation in varying degrees. By involving the people in the matters of the state and governance, political participation fosters stability and order by reinforcing the legitimacy of political authority. There are many forms of participation and democracy is the form of government which encourages maximum participation in governmental process. Participation does not mean the mere exercise of their franchise by the people, rather it means their active involvement which in a real manner influences the decision making of the govt.

Political participation can either be active or passive. People may participate actively in the political process either by exercising their franchise (right to vote) or by joining any political party, or contesting elections independently to an office. However, people may also participate in the political process by other ways such as reading, listening or watching the daily news about the various policies and programmes of the government and other political developments. People may also participate by taking part in political discussions and sharing their views on matters of national interest through newspaper columns. Such passive participation is equally important for a democracy to be a truly representative and participatory democracy as it not only reviews the actions of the government but also indicates a high level of political awareness among the masses.

However, Seymour M. Lipset has pointed out that high level participation cannot always be treated as good for democracy. It may indicate the decline of social cohesion and breakdown of democratic process. While some other scholars are of the opinion that when majority of the people in a society are contented, the political participation is low. This should be taken as a favourable rather than unfavourable sign because it indicates stability and consensus within society and also the absence of broad cleavages.

As stated earlier, individuals can participate in government and politics in numerous ways. They can choose to take an active part in their government by the easiest form of political participation – voting. They can also participate in the political process in their individual capacity by contesting elections to an office. They can also form an interest group or join a political party to articulate their interests and opinions in the given political system.

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Interest / Pressure Group

Decision-making is the essence of political dynamics. Decisions involve compromises among conflicting interests of social groups and political parties. Interest groups or pressure groups play an important role in decision-making. Such groups allow an orderly expression of public opinion and increase political participation.

Interest groups are the groups based upon common attitudes, concerns or interests. These are voluntary associations of individuals and their primary objective is to promote or protect the shared concerns or interests of the respective members.

Interest groups, according to Blondel, may be classified into two types:

promotional and protective. Promotional groups tend to defend specific points of view (such as environmentalism, human rights, prevention of cruelty to animals, nuclear disarmament, etc.) and their membership remains open to all citizens. Protective groups, on the other hand, defend certain specific interests of some particular social groups (such as trade unions, professional associations, peasants, businessmen, etc.) and their membership is limited.

Some scholars are of the opinion that if interest groups, in their pursuit of common interests, try to influence the public policy or government’s decision- making process, without formally becoming a part of the government (i.e. without sharing any responsibility) then they become pressure groups. Definitions:

• Well known political scientists Harold Lasswell and Abraham Kaplan remarked, ‘a group is an organized aggregate and an interest group is an interest aggregate.’

• According to Schaefer and Lamm, ‘an interest group is a voluntary association of citizens who attempt to influence public policy.’

• According to The Blackwell Dictionary of Sociology, ‘an interest (or pressure) group is an organization whose purpose is to influence the distribution and use of political power in a society.’

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• According to Andrew Heywood, ‘an interest group or pressure group (the terms are often but not always used interchangeably) is an organised association which aims to influence the policies or actions of government.’

Thus, it may be argued that interest groups or pressure groups are voluntary associations of people having mutual concern about a wide array of economic, social, cultural, political, religious or any other issues. These are formally constituted organizations which are designed at least partly to put pressure on government, civil service and other political institutions to achieve ends that they favour.

Broadly speaking, pressure groups may be any group attempting to bring

about any change in the working of any formal organization – state, government or any other social or economic organization. They are private associations to influence mass public policy. These groups are vital part of the political process. The political process is seen to result from a large number of competing interest or pressure groups.

Pressure groups, lobby groups and interest groups are distinct from clubs or social groups, in that their explicit purpose is to mobilize public opinion in support of their aims and to put pressure on decision-making bodies to agree to and support their demands – be they are for continuation of the existing state of affairs or for some change or innovation.

Pressure groups are found only in liberal-democratic political systems, in which the rights of political association and freedom of expression are respected. Pressure groups, however, differ from political parties in that they seek to exert influence from outside, rather than to win or exercise government power. Further, pressure groups typically have a narrow issue focus, in that they are usually concerned with a specific cause or the interests of a particular group, and seldom have the border programmic or ideological features that are generally associated with political parties.

The most positive perspective on group politics is offered by pluralist theories. These theories not only see organized groups as the fundamental building blocks of the political process, but also portray them as a vital guarantee of liberty and democracy. Arguments in favour of pressure groups include the idea that they strengthen representation by articulating interests and advancing views ignored by political parties; that they promote debate and discussion and thus create a more informed electorate ; that they broaden the scope of political participation; that they check government power and maintain a vigorous and healthy civil society;

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and that they promote political stability by providing a channel of communication between government and the people.

However, a more critical view of pressure groups is advanced by the Marxist scholars. Marxist scholars argue that group politics systematically advantages business and financial interests that control the crucial employment and investment decisions in a capitalist society, and that the state is biased in favour of such interests through its role in upholding the capitalist system which they dominate. Thus, from the conflict perspective, the limitation of interest groups or pressure groups is that they tend to represent mainly the wealthier or better- educated sections of the public, leaving the poor and minorities largely unrepresented.

Almond and Powell, in their work Comparative Politics, have classified interest groups into four types:

• Institutional Interest Groups: These interest or pressure groups are found within formal institutions such as political parties, legislatures, armies, bureaucracies, etc. Examples of such institutional interest groups are the representatives of weaker sections of society in the legislature (such as MLAs or MPs representing the interests of scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, religious and linguistic minorities, women, etc.), civil servants’ association of a particular department, conservative business interests within mass political parties, labour leaders in social democratic parties, etc.

• Associational Interest Groups: Associational interest groups have both

organized structures with full-time professional staff, and well-established procedures for the formulation of demands. The organizational base of these pressure groups places them in an advantageous position vis-à-vis other groups, and they often tend to regulate the development of other interest groups. For example, Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), trade unions, organizations of businessmen (Oilseeds Dealers’ Association) or of manufacturers (Jute Manufacturers’ Association), organizations of religious denominations ( the Vishwa Hindu Parishad ), various civic groups (such as Peoples’ Union of Civil Liberties), etc. The effectiveness of associational interest groups, however, depends on, as Almond and Powell have pointed out, the degree of autonomy they enjoy vis-à-vis political parties. This is particularly true of worker’s, peasant’s and student’s organizations. These

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associational groups, when subordinated by political parties, instead of articulating the needs perceived by their members, serve only as instruments to mobilize support for the party.

• Non-associational Interest Groups: These are groups that lack both an organized structure as well as an organized, well-established procedure of articulation. Articulation of interests may take the form of a petition of an informal delegation from a linguistic group regarding language instruction in schools, appeals by relatives to a cabinet minister for some preferred treatment, etc. Kinship groups, ethnic, regional, and status groups are examples of non-associational interest groups.

• Anomic Interest Groups: When individuals or organized groups fail to

obtain adequate representation in the political system, the resultant discontent leads to the spontaneous emergence of anomic groups. Riots or demonstrations may be sparked by an incident or by the emergence of an enthusiastic leader. Such spontaneous groups have limited organization.