Graduation Year

Spring 2013

Document Type

Open Access Senior Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Government

Reader 1

Aseema Sinha

Rights Information

© 2013 Jasjeet S. Virk

Abstract

A nation of one billion people, India is often recognized as the world’s largest democracy. The ethnic, cultural, and religious diversity in India creates a unique collection of voters whose divisions are not only brought about due to differences in ideological preferences, but also as a result of various caste and ethnic divisions that remain strongly ingrained in modern Indian society. Indian political parties must not only be able to gain voter confidence through the production and presentation of sound ideology, but also must struggle to help relate this ideology to a much divided and ethnically stratified voter base. This social construct has led to the rise of various political parties in India whose political agenda is to cater specifically to unique ethnic groups and minorities, while at times having to form political alliances gain power (Jana & Sarmah, 2002, 1). This study will analyze the rise of one such Indian political party formally established as the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in the state of Uttar Pradesh. More specifically, it will address the following question: Has engaging in party coalitions caused the BSP to sacrifice its ideology in the arena of Uttar Pradesh Politics?

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