Extra 30 short-answer questions from Chapter:8 Challenges to Democracy (Class 10 CBSE Political Science):
1. What is meant by ‘challenges to democracy’?
✅ Answer: A challenge to democracy refers to difficulties or obstacles that prevent the smooth functioning and deepening of democracy, such as corruption, lack of political participation, and communalism.
2. What are the major challenges to democracy?
✅ Answer: The major challenges to democracy are:
Foundational challenges
(establishing democracy in non-democratic countries).
Challenges of expansion
(ensuring rights, participation, and decentralization).
Challenges of deepening democracy
(improving institutions and reducing corruption).
3. What is the foundational challenge to democracy?
✅ Answer: The foundational challenge refers to the difficulty of establishing a democratic system in countries that do not follow democratic principles, such as dictatorships or monarchies.
4. What is the challenge of expansion in democracy?
✅ Answer: The challenge of expansion includes ensuring political participation, decentralization, and equal rights to marginalized sections while maintaining democratic values.
5. What is the challenge of deepening democracy?
✅ Answer: The challenge of deepening democracy is about strengthening democratic institutions, ensuring more transparency, and increasing public participation in governance.
6. How does corruption pose a challenge to democracy?
✅ Answer: Corruption weakens democracy by allowing leaders to misuse public funds, reduces trust in government, and affects fair decision-making in governance.
7. How does money power affect democracy?
✅ Answer: Money power in elections leads to unfair advantages for wealthy candidates, promotes corruption, and reduces equal political opportunities for all citizens.
8. What role does caste and religion play in challenging democracy?
✅ Answer: Caste and religion-based politics create divisions in society, encourage vote-bank politics, and sometimes lead to violence, weakening democratic principles of equality and secularism.
9. How does lack of education weaken democracy?
✅ Answer: An uneducated population is more likely to be influenced by false information, unable to make informed choices, and less likely to participate actively in governance.
10. What are the effects of political instability on democracy?
✅ Answer: Political instability can lead to frequent changes in government, delays in policy-making, reduced public trust, and sometimes the rise of authoritarian rule.
11. Why is electoral reform necessary in a democracy?
✅ Answer: Electoral reforms help improve free and fair elections, reduce money and muscle power in politics, and ensure better representation of people’s voices.
12. How does lack of transparency weaken democracy?
✅ Answer: Without transparency, governments can hide important decisions from the public, leading to corruption and reduced accountability.
13. How does gender discrimination challenge democracy?
✅ Answer: Gender discrimination limits political participation of women, affects equal rights, and weakens the democratic principle of equality for all citizens.
14. How does lack of political participation affect democracy?
✅ Answer: When people do not participate in elections and decision-making, leaders become unaccountable, leading to weak governance and reduced public representation.
15. What are some measures to strengthen democracy?
✅ Answer:
Electoral reforms to ensure free and fair elections.
Increasing political awareness through education.
Promoting transparency in governance.
Strengthening independent institutions like the judiciary and election commission.
16. What is the impact of communalism on democracy?
✅ Answer: Communalism divides people based on religion, leading to conflicts, discrimination, and reduced harmony, which weakens the secular fabric of democracy.
17. How does political violence challenge democracy?
✅ Answer: Political violence, such as riots and protests turning violent, disrupts law and order, reduces free political participation, and threatens democratic stability.
18. Why is decentralization important for democracy?
✅ Answer: Decentralization allows local governments to take decisions for their regions, ensuring better representation and increased political participation.
19. How does lack of free press challenge democracy?
✅ Answer: Without a free press, governments can suppress important information, prevent criticism, and manipulate public opinion, reducing accountability.
20. How do unfair elections affect democracy?
✅ Answer: Unfair elections reduce public trust, allow corrupt leaders to stay in power, and deny citizens their right to choose their representatives freely.
21. What role do social movements play in strengthening democracy?
✅ Answer: Social movements raise awareness, demand policy changes, and hold governments accountable, leading to stronger democratic governance.
22. How does military intervention challenge democracy?
✅ Answer: Military intervention replaces elected governments with authoritarian rule, suspends rights, and undermines the democratic process.
23. How does low voter turnout affect democracy?
✅ Answer: Low voter turnout reduces representation, weakens public influence in decision-making, and allows unaccountable leaders to remain in power.
24. How do dynastic politics challenge democracy?
✅ Answer: Dynastic politics limit equal opportunities, concentrate power in a few families, and prevent capable individuals from participating in governance.
25. How can technology help strengthen democracy?
✅ Answer:
Digital voting can make elections fairer.
Social media can increase political awareness.
Online petitions allow citizens to voice concerns.
E-governance improves transparency.
26. Why is independent judiciary important for democracy?
✅ Answer: An independent judiciary ensures that laws are followed fairly, protects citizens' rights, and prevents government misuse of power.
27. How does globalization affect democracy?
✅ Answer: Globalization can bring economic development but may also increase corporate influence in politics, affecting democratic decision-making.
28. How do electoral bonds challenge democracy?
✅ Answer: Electoral bonds allow anonymous political funding, which can lead to corruption and reduce transparency in political financing.
29. What is the impact of fake news on democracy?
✅ Answer: Fake news misleads people, spreads misinformation, and can create social unrest, weakening trust in democratic institutions.
30. How can citizens help in strengthening democracy?
✅ Answer:
By actively participating in elections.
Raising awareness about social and political issues.
Holding leaders accountable through protests and petitions.
Promoting transparency and fair governance.
