The rhythm of India’s political life is largely determined by the electoral calendar. Political parties and electoral politics play a central role not only for the determination of who governs but also for the translation of social aspirations onto the political sphere. This course provides a broad review of some of the basic concepts and notions that underlie party politics, such as party organizations, party systems, electoral systems, and political representation. It also traces the genealogy of various families of political parties in India, the transformations of the party system at the national and at the state level, the transformation of the role of political parties and the evolution of their sociology. This course also explores the transformations of electoral and party politics in India and addresses some of the large questions that pertain to electoral politics, such as the role of identities, ideology, clientelism and populism, among others.
