The Changing Face of Parties and Party Systems Sunil K. Choudhary The Changing Face of Parties and Party Systems A Study of Israel and Sunil K. Choudhary Developing Countries Research Centre University of Delhi Delhi, India

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The number 14 assumes significance in the literary, academic and personal domains of India in general and by the author in particular. In Hindu mythological scripture – the Ramayana - ‘14 years’ became related to the exile of Lord Rama to follow the directions of his father, Lord Dashratha, with unequivocal obedience. ‘Fourteen’ is the date when the author of the book was born in New Delhi, the capital of India, in January 1968. The number 14 is also linked to the culmination of the author’s struggle. After failing to be selected at thirteen colleges of the University of Delhi, the author was finally selected as a regular faculty at Shyam Lal College Evening, University of Delhi, which became the academic abode in his fourteenth attempt. ‘Fourteen’ is also associated with the joining of the author as a professor of Political Science at the University of Delhi in the year 2014. And, finally, it is the fourteenth year since the return of the author from Tel Aviv University, Israel, after completing his postdoctoral research during 2002–2003 that this work seems to be seeing the light of publication in 2017. The academic trajectory of writing the manuscript on Israel and India began in 2003 after my return from Israel. Writing on a nation with innumerous similarities in terms of culture, history, society, economy and

v vi Preface polity vis a vis India unknown to the external world, at least in terms of academic literature, became an important challenge. Election after elec- tion passed in the two democratic nations and my penchant for accom- modating the latest developments with formative events kept on increasing. Meanwhile, I got another postdoctoral engagement at the University of Oxford during 2010–11 that diverted the focus of my research attention and engagement, from Israeli parties to the Indian diaspora in Britain. Throughout the decade since my arrival from Israel, I kept on writing on different issues related to Israel and India. Fortunately, from 2006 to 2016, I attended five meetings of the World Congress of International Political Science Association, held in Fukuoka, Santiago, Madrid, Montreal and Poznan, and presented my papers with comparative perspectives on Israel and India by covering many topics from democra- cies to parties, civil society to nationalism, and finally to subalterns and marginals. The scholarly feedback on my papers with rich inputs kept on strengthening my desire not to stop until I had produced a classic work on the two nations. The year 2014 marked a real watershed in my long academic journey covering Israel and India. My joining the Department of Political Science, University of Delhi, as a professor in 2014 and my nomination as Director of the Developing Countries Research Centre (DCRC), Univer- sity of Delhi, in 2015 by Hon’ble Vice Chancellor Professor Dinesh Singh made me strive towards my mission of translating all my collected and collective ideas in the form of a seminal work. The finishing touch was made when the University of Delhi approved my proposal for a postgrad- uate course on Israel for the academic session 2016–17. The course, titled ‘Society, State and Politics: Comparing Israel and India’, received tremen- dous support and intake from students, including foreign nationals. It was during the course of my continuous interactions and consistent engage- ments with my students and scholars that my Vision was transformed into a Mission, with Springer and Palgrave Macmillan becoming the flight carriers. The present work is an honest attempt to highlight the similarities amidst the differences between Israel and India against the backdrop of parliamentary governance, coalitional polity and party systems. It Preface vii underlines the democratic journey of the two parliamentary nations, particularly from the late nineteenth century until contemporary times, delineating the transitions and transformations, continuities and convul- sions, movements and momentums that the two nations have been undergoing since their emergence as independent political entities. Much to the discomfort of those Western scholars who had seen the Israeli party system as either ‘baffling’ or ‘decimating’ and the Indian counterpart as ‘dal dal’ (chaotic in view of a multiplicity of parties), the contemporary party systems in the two parliamentary nations have actually attempted to transform democracies into accountable polities. The holding of the 20th elections for the Knesset and the 16th elections for the (the lower house of Parliament) tells the success stories of the two unique parliamentary systems which have succeeded in with- standing the trends of authoritarianism, dictatorship and undemocratic militant takeovers witnessed in different parts of the world. The present work thus delineates many forms and formulations, con- cepts and conceptualizations, ideas and idealizations that would leave scope for further research and explorations in the discipline of social sciences. The elections in the twenty-first century in both Israel and India have witnessed many new trends that also need to be theorized by social scientists across the globe. The shift from a one-party dominated government to a one-party headed coalition, the formulation of the Mapaivot and Coalitional Multipolarity, Salience of the Silence – the Silent Voters - replacing floating voters, the politics of re-alignment taking over alignment and de-alignment, and the emergence of pan parties as an alternative to the ‘umbrella parties’ are some of the emerging trends seen in both Israel and India. Further, party formations on the basis of the I4 as well as the C5 party-building models in contemporary times could be seen as new theorizations that need to be examined under competitive party systems across the globe. Theorization of these new terms and formulations would further require serious social science understanding in the context of empirical investigations by scholars and social scientists in different parliamentary democratic nations around the world. The completion of my research work has incurred innumerable debts. My doctoral supervisor, Professor M.P. Singh, formerly with the Department of viii Preface

Political Science, University of Delhi, provided his magnanimous helping hand during the entire course of the completion of my post-doctoral work at Tel Aviv University, Israel. His generosity, cordiality and benevolence have left an indelible imprint that has received consistent exposure in my research commitments. I owe my sincere thanks to Professor Yogesh Atal, who retired as Principal Director of Social and Human Sciences at UNESCO, Paris. Working with him for two of my projects on Corruption and Election improved my understanding of the subject and strengthened my focus on the criticality of social science analysis. It would not be an exaggeration to admit that his consistent supervision, persuasive guidance and generous directions along with critical comments carved out a new academic persona in me. He is responsible for elevating me to a new saga of ‘real academics’. No one could have expressed so much happiness for the publication of this work from an international press than my sister, Dr Kanchan Jain, currently working as a principal with the Directorate of Education, Government of National Capital Territory, Delhi. Like a parent, her perennial support, inspiration and encouragement was a real panacea for me during the critical juncture of my undertaking research at Tel Aviv in 2002 and its rightful culmination in 2017. The work is also a tribute to my Daddyji and Chaiji who would have always seen me flying at the top of the academic world. I would like to express my gratitude to my friend, philosopher and guide Professor Ramesh Bhardwaj, Joint Director, DCRC, University of Delhi. Throughout the long period of crises and convulsions, his unflinching support made me resilient to the externalities and complex- ities of the day. It is due to his blessings and wishes that this work is coming out in the form of a book. I extend my profound thanks from the core of my heart to my loving students, Arun and Aashish, Arvind and Umesh, and my beloved students-cum-daughters, GPS, each letter referring to their names, viz., Garima, Preeti and Srishty, for their caring and sharing spirit. Their painstaking efforts, invaluable suggestions and critical observations short- ened the journey of this work. If the work is seeing new light in the global sphere, it is because of their concern with, commitment to and conviction Preface ix in me and my work. Their parents and family members equally deserve thanks for showing unequivocal empathy for the project. My acknowledgements would be incomplete without focusing on the academic and moral support of allmyseniorcolleaguesandother friends, especially Dr Harish Sharma, Consultant, ICSSR, New Delhi; Professor A S Narang, formerly faculty with IGNOU, New Delhi; Dr R. C. Varmani, Dr O P Arora and Dr R C Bhatia, formerly faculty at Shyam Lal College (Eve.), University of Delhi; Professor Sangit K Ragi from the Department of Political Science, University of Delhi; Lawyer Anurag Bana, London; my brotherly neighbours Shri Rahul Tandon and Shri R K Saraf; and many others. The innovative ideas and critical insights of all of them greatly accelerated the pace of my momentum, leading to the accomplishment of the research work. My gratitude is also due to all my fellow colleagues and staff at the DCRC, University of Delhi, for imparting vitality and vibrancy to the work. Engaging with all my fellows, characterized as Navratnas, during the course of seminars and conferences, lectures and discourses, for the past one and half years immensely enriched my knowledge, in addition to adding immense expertise and exposure. I would also like to place my formal acknowledgement on record for the initial guidance and support during my stay in Israel by my postdoc- toral supervisor in the Political Science Department of Tel Aviv Univer- sity, Israel, Dr Ornit Shani, and other professors in the Department, viz., Professor Michal Shamir, Professor Gad Barzilai and Professor Shaul Mishal. My stay at Tel Aviv University, Israel, was boosted with renewed energy and zeal amidst the hospitality and generosity of Mr Ahron Nagan and all the members of his family. The regular post-lunch discus- sions and interactions with Ahron bhai at the University campus over coffee kept me striving for excellence in the alien land. It was also the company of my Indian friend in the Department of Physics, Sridhar, that made me feel at home. Other members of the Indian diasporic group, mostly scholars like Vilas and Mrs and Mr Das and their family, also provided me with a homelike ambience by making my stay more productive and fruitful. x Preface

It was the earnest desire of my younger brother, an alumnus from IIT Bombay and IIM Ahmedabad, the late Mr Anil Choudhary alias Chow,to get my work on Israel published by an international press. Even though he is no longer here to see this work, this book will remain as an everlasting tribute to his memory. I am greatly indebted to my family – my Matashree (other), my wife Sasmita and son Shreyak - for their unswerving cooperation, unfaltering support and unflinching trust that strengthened my perseverance for the Mission. It was a balance between my perseverance and their patience which ultimately facilitated the accomplishment of the much awaited work. Lastbutnotleast,IamhighlythankfultothestaffoftheCentral Reference Library and Ratan Tata Library, University of Delhi; Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi; Nehru Memorial Library, Teen Murti, New Delhi (particularly Rita Mam and Seema Mam); Sourasky Central Library and Brender-Moss Library for Social Sciences, Management and Education, Tel Aviv University, Israel, for giving their immense help by allowing me to access the rich research materials and archival literature during the course of my stay. The plethora of research materials of these libraries and the cordiality of their staff will always remind me of the effective bonding between the academic institutions and aspiring scholars that all desire but very few actually acquire in the competitive global society. With the support and sustenance of all my beloved and revered ones – students and scholars, fellows and friends, supervisors and supporters, colleagues and companions, institutions and instructors – I have finally come to the end of my academic journey on Israel stretching from 2002 until 2017. Though the work which has seen the light of publication today couldn’t have been possible without the inputs and insights of all of them, the sole responsibility of producing the ideas into a coherent and consistent book rests on me only.

Developing Countries Research Centre Sunil K. Choudhary University of Delhi Delhi, India 10 April 2017 About the Book

Very few nations in the world bear such similarities and present such distinct differences in their historical evolution, social formation and democratic governance from their inception until the present as Israel and India. Parties appear to have played a critical role in this new transformation in the socio-economic and political realms in both these democratic nations. The book is a modest attempt to examine the role of parties in the transformation of the democracies and governance of these two leading parliamentary systems. Highlighting the trajectory of parties and party systems from the twentieth century to contemporary times, the book seeks to underline the changing dimensions of parties and party systems in Israel and India within the context of parliamentary democracy, coalitional polity, electoral profiles and social diversity. The book also attempts to underline the changing transformation of societies, democracies and governance in both Israel and India, and examines the role of political parties as a real catalyst of change in these two democratic nations, particularly in the aftermath of liberalization and globalization.

xi Contents

Part I Parties and Party Systems: A Conceptual Framework 1

1 Theorizing Parties and Party Systems 3

2 Locating Israeli and Indian Parties and Party Systems 23

Part II Parties and the State Formation 33

3 Yishuv: The Pre-state Period in Israel 35

4 : From a ‘Safety Valve’ to the Political Pioneer of Freedom Struggle 47

Part III Parties in the Post-independence Polities: From Predominance to Pluralism 57

xiii xiv Contents

5 Mapaivot vs Congress System 59

6 Mahapach vs Janata Parivar 85

7 Toward a Coalitional Multipolarity 97

Part IV Ideological Roots, Social Bases and Electoral Patterns of the Parties: Exploring Israel and India 119

8 The Left-Wing Parties (Socialist Block) 121

9 The Right-Wing Parties (Nationalist Block) 139

10 The Centrist Parties (Centrist Block) 175

11 The Ethno-Religious Parties (Ethno-Religious Block) 201

12 The Arab Parties (Arab Block) 235

Part V Parties and the Government Making 251

13 Coalition Politics in Israel and India 253

14 Competing Issues of Governance: Israel and India Compared 311 Contents xv

The Way Forward 343

Bibliography 349

Index 369 About the Author

Sunil K. Choudhary is a professor of Political Science and Director of the Developing Countries Research Centre at the University of Delhi. He has an outstanding academic record and research publications. A postdoctoral fellow from Tel Aviv Univer- sity, Israel, and a Common- wealth Fellow at the University of Oxford, U.K., he has written extensively on contem- porary issues which have not only been featured in various refereed national and interna- tional journals but have also been published as peer-reviewed books.

xvii xviii About the Author

He has to his credit today 6 books, 38 research papers and 114 research publications and presentations. As an expert/examiner/editor, he has been associated with various premier institutions. He is the recipient of various national and international awards. He was honoured with the prestigious Global South Award, 2014, by the Inter- national Political Science Association in Montreal, Canada. This award is given to only one social science scholar from nearly amongst 150 nations for making distinct research contributions in the countries of the Global South. List of Abbreviations

AAP ABVP Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad ADP Arab Democratic Party AGP AIADMK All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam AIB Arab Islamic Block (al-Kutla al-‘Arabiyya al-Islamiyya) AITUC All India Trade Union Congress ASEAN Association of South East Asian Nations BaLad National Democratic Alliance BAMCEF Backward and Minority Community Employees Federation BC Before Christ BCE Before Christian Era BJD Biju BJP Bharatiya BJS BLD Bharatiya BMS Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh BSP CPC Communist Party of China CPI CPI (M) Communist Party of India (Marxist)

xix xx List of Abbreviations

CPI (ML) Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) CPSU Communist Party of the Soviet Union CRM Civil Rights Movement CSO Civil Society Organizations DASH Democratic Movement for Change DFPE Democratic Front for Peace and Equality (HADASH) DMK Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam EESP Emerging Economy Stabilization Plan EU European Union FEMA Foreign Exchange Management Act FICCI Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade GDP Gross Domestic Product GPEW Green Party of England and Wales GST Goods and Services Tax HVC Haryana Vikas Congress ICHR Indian Council of Historical Research ICT Information and Communication Technology IMIM India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen INC (O) Indian National Congress (Organization) INC (R) Indian National Congress (Requisitionists) ISI Inter-Services Intelligence IZL Irgun Zvai Leumi J&K Jammu and Kashmir JD (U) Janata Dal (United) JD Janata Dal JMM Mukti Morcha JP Jaya Prakash Narayan KACH Movement, founded by Rabbi Meir Kahana KMPP Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party KMSP Kisan Mazdoor KMT Kuomintang Lal-Bal-Pal Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal LHI Lohamei Herut Israel or Fighters for the Freedom of Israel LKD Lok Dal LPG Liberalization, Privatization and Globalization LS Lok Sabha Mafdal Miflaga Datit Leumit (National Religious Party of Israel) Maki Miflaga Communistit Yisraelit (Communist Party of Israel) List of Abbreviations xxi

Mapai Mifleget Poalei Eretz-Israel (Workers Party of the Land of Israel) MAPAM Mifleget Poalim Meuchedet (United Workers Party of Israel) MDMK Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MLA Member of Legislative Assembly MNF Mizo MP Madhya Pradesh MP Member of Parliament NAG National Agenda for Governance NAM Non-Aligned Movement NC National Conference NCP Nationalist Congress Party NDA National Democratic Alliance NDA National Democratic Alliance (al-Tajammu’al-Watani al-Dimukrati) NDF National Democratic Front NGO Non-Governmental Organization NRI Non-Resident Indian NRP National Religious Party NRV (Movement for) National Religious Revival NSUI National Students Union of India OBC Other Backward Classes PA Progressive Alliance (al-Tahaluf al-Taqaddumi) PDS Public Distribution System PLO Palestinian Liberation Organization PLP Progressive List for Peace PMK PMO Prime Minister’sOffice POK Pakistani Occupied Kashmir PRI Panchayati Raj Institutions PSP PSU Public Sector Undertaking PWP Peasants and Workers Party RAFI Israel Workers’ List RAKAH Reshima Komunistit Hadasha RAZ Citizens’ Rights Movement and Peace RJD RKMS Rashtriya Kisan Mazdoor Sanghathan RPI Republican Party of India RRP Ram Rajya Parishad RS xxii List of Abbreviations

RSS Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh RTI Right to Information SAARC South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation SAD Shiromani SAP Samata Party SC Scheduled Caste SEZ Special Economic Zone SGPC Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee SHAS Shomrei Torah Sephardim or Sephardi Torah Guardians or Association of Sephardi Observants of the Torah SOC Socialist Party SP SP Sangh Parivar SP SS SSP ST Scheduled Tribe SVD Samyukta Vidhayak Dal TC (All India) Trinamool Congress TDP Telugu Dessam Party TI Transparency International TINA There Is No Alternative TMC Tamil Maanila Congress TRS Telangana Rashtra Samiti UAL United Arab League UCC Uniform Civil Code UDF United Democratic Front UF UP Uttar Pradesh UPA United Progressive Alliance UTJ United Torah Judaism VHP Vishwa Hindu Parishad VOAM Voice of Agreement Movement (Nida’ a al-Wifaq) WPP All India Congress of Workers and Peasants WTO World Trade Organization WZO World Zionist Organization List of Figures

Fig. 1.1 Bases for party formation 5 Fig. 5.1 Mapai in Knesset (1949–1965) 61 Fig. 5.2 Congress in Lok Sabha (1952–67) 74 Fig. 5.3 The Congress System 78 Fig. 6.1 Left and right blocks in the Knesset (1977) 87 Fig. 6.2 Left and right blocks: seats in the Knesset (1977–1988) 87 Fig. 6.3 Left and right blocks: vote % in the Knesset (1977–1988) 88 Fig. 6.4 Congress and Janata in Lok Sabha (1977) 92 Fig. 7.1 Regional parties in Lok Sabha (1989–2014) 105 Fig. 7.2 Congress in Lok Sabha, 1989–2014 105 Fig. 7.3 BJP in Lok Sabha, 1984–2014 106 Fig. 8.1 Labor’ seats in the Knesset, 1949–2015 126 Fig. 8.2 Labor’s voting percentage in the Knesset, 1949–2015 127 Fig. 8.3 Labor’ performance in the Knesset, 1949–2015 128 Fig. 8.4 CPI in the Lok Sabha, 1952–2014 133 Fig. 8.5 CPM in Lok Sabha, 1967–2014 134 Fig. 9.1 Likud’s seats in the Knesset, 1949–2015 150 Fig. 9.2 Likud’ voting percentage in the Knesset, 1949–2015 151 Fig. 9.3 Likud’s performance in the Knesset, 1949–2015 152 Fig. 9.4 BJP’s seats in Lok Sabha, 1984–2014 155 Fig. 9.5 BJP’s voting percentage in Lok Sabha, 1984–2014 156

xxiii xxiv List of Figures

Fig. 9.6 BJP’s performance in Lok Sabha, 1984–2014 157 Fig. 9.7 Shiv Sena in Lok Sabha, 1989–2014 171 Fig. 10.1 Shinui/Kadima’s seats in the Knesset, 1981–2013 180 Fig. 10.2 Shinui/Kadima’s voting percentage in the Knesset, 1981–2013 181 Fig. 10.3 Shinui/Kadima in the Knesset, 1981–2013 182 Fig. 10.4 Congress’ seats in Lok Sabha, 1952–2014 187 Fig. 10.5 Congress’ voting percentage in Lok Sabha, 1952–2014 188 Fig. 10.6 Congress’ performance in Lok Sabha, 1952–2014 189 Fig. 11.1 NRP’s seats in the Knesset, 1959–2015 207 Fig. 11.2 NRP’s voting percentage in the Knesset, 1959–2015 208 Fig. 11.3 NRP’s performance in the Knesset, 1959–2015 209 Fig. 11.4 Shas’ seats in the Knesset, 1984–2015 215 Fig. 11.5 Shas’ voting percentage in the Knesset, 1984–2015 216 Fig. 11.6 Shas’ performance in the Knesset, 1984–2015 217 Fig. 11.7 Po’alei Agudat Yisrael in the Knesset, 1951–2015 221 Fig. 11.8 BSP’ seats in Lok Sabha, 1989–2014 223 Fig. 11.9 BSP’ voting percentage in Lok Sabha, 1989–2014 224 Fig. 11.10 BSP’ performance in Lok Sabha, 1989–2014 225 Fig. 11.11 Samajwadi Party in Lok Sabha, 1996–2014 227 Fig. 11.12 Rashtriya Janata Dal in Lok Sabha, 1998–2014 229 Fig. 11.13 in Lok Sabha, 1952–2014 230 Fig. 12.1 Hadash’ seats in the Knesset, 1997–2015 241 Fig. 12.2 Hadash’ voting percentage in the Knesset, 1977–2015 242 Fig. 12.3 Hadash in the Knesset, 1977–2015 243 List of Tables

Table 5.1 The Knesset elections: 1949–2015 62 Table 5.2 Coalition governments in Israel (1949–2015) 75 Table 7.1 The Lok Sabha elections: 1952–2014 107 Table 13.1 Constitutional governments in India (1952–2014) 256

xxv Introduction

Democracy is a treasure which no one will ever discover by deliberate search. But in continuing our search, in labouring indefatigably to discover the indiscoverable, we shall perform a work which will have fertile results in the democratic sense. (Robert Michels)

Democracies, parties and governance are the essential ingredients for a smooth functioning of polities all over the world. While democracies as foundations of polities empower people, parties as democratic wheels give effective say to the people in controlling power and ensuring governance. Though non-democratic polities do ensure governance, such governance fails to fulfil the basic parameters of accountability, transparency and peaceful transition of power. The democratic systems all over the world have been showing consid- erable maturity in terms of accommodating and absorbing the disparate elements into their systems of governance. The twenty-first century has witnessed many significant developments where a transition has taken place from authoritarian regimes to democratic polities through people’s protests. The Arab Spring of 2011 is one such development where the hitherto excluded West Asia started getting swapped by democratic

xxvii xxviii Introduction movements. Notwithstanding the inherent anomalies and prominent diversities in such a spirit of absorption, democracies have been sustained in this third wave of democratization (alaHuntington 1997) by with- standing all anti-democratic and authoritarian pressures. The democratic regimes get their very sustenance from the people. The voice of a man in the street replaces the common voice in the democratic framework of a system. Such a voice per se gets its authoritative presen- tation in governance through the legitimate party system. Political parties and party systems in this way strengthen the democratic ethos in the political systems characterized by a multiplicity of identities and diversity of nations. Political parties offer a vital link between the state and civil society. In a representative democratic system, parties often operate as autonomous units in the domain of political action. They play a decisive role in bringing political stability to the parliamentary democratic system. They are not only the catalyst for transforming people’s aspirations into dem- ocratic goals but also act as watchdogs, as a representative democracy cannot function without political parties. Political parties are the essence of democratic systems as they tend to effectively channel the governmental machinery. Their role is no less important in non-democratic systems, though parties work more or less on the principle of checks and balances under democratic regimes. The success of a democratic polity is invariably linked to the strength of the parties and the vibrancy of the party systems. Political parties in contemporary societies have become the real cata- lysts, harbingers or wheels of democratic governance. Democratic polities seldom function effectively in the absence of political parties. With their genesis in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, parties have been in a constant phase of transformation. The process of liberalization and globalization has further strengthened this transformation process in the twenty-first-century global world, which has become a competitive market society. As catalysts of democratic participation and good gover- nance, parties have come to assume new salience in the contemporary world. The post-colonization period marked the birth of new democracies around the world. Huntington examined the democratic resurgence in Introduction xxix different parts of the world under the ambit of ‘waves’. Similarly, the developments of the 1980s brought about a change of emphasis from government to governance all over the world. However, unlike the much discussed and debated notions of ‘democracies’ and ‘governance’, political parties have never gained much attention amongst researchers and social scientists. The seminal works on parties by Ostrogorski, Michels, Duverger, Sartori and others sought to examine the political systems within the party framework during the twentieth century only. The onset of globalization has brought about new alignments, trans- formations and challenges for political parties and party systems. Besides giving rise to new forms of parties rooted in ethnicity, religiosity, ecology and probity, contemporary parties and party systems have witnessed new challenges from different sectors of society, the most prominent being civil society organizations. Parties are grappling with the new issues of alignments and re-alignments, electorate volatility, increasing floating voters, emergence of green parties, coalitional dynamics and new ideolog- ical transformations. However, in spite of the diverse challenges, parties have become indispensable in the functioning of democratic politics all over the world. Very few nations bear such similarities and present such distinct differences in their historical evolution, social formation and democratic governance from their inception to the present as Israel and India. By reconciling the state suzerainty with people’s power, parties appear to have played a critical role in the socio-economic and political realms in both these democratic nations. The present study is an attempt to examine the role of parties in the transformation of the democracies and governance of the two leading parliamentary systems, viz., Israel and India. With its emergence as an independent political entity from British rule in 1948, Israel moved from a one party-led government and an ethnically dominated homogeneous society of the mid-twentieth century towards a multiparty coalitional system and a heterogenous ethnic society of the twenty-first century. By gaining independence from British colonial rule in 1947, India too moved from one-party dominance, called the ‘Congress System’, and a plural society from the 1950s to 1980s to an era of multiparty coalitions and a multicultural nation with the beginning of the global market society of the xxx Introduction present century. The current study aims to highlight the changing nature of the parties and party systems of Israel and India, and shows how the societies, states and governments have been transformed during the long course of their existence in these countries. The process of globalization during the 1980s heralded a new change in thesystemofgovernanceinbothIsraelandIndia.Thisisreflected in the ideological postulates of the parties in electoral politics, as well as in the issues of goverance in both nations. The study seeks to encapsulate the new changes the parties and party systems have been undergoing in the two parliamentary democratic nations. The author has examined all the parliamentary elections and the forms of government in both Israel and India and has characterized the transformation in these two parliamentary polities as ‘a shift from predominance to pluralism’. For a clear understanding of the evolution, growth and changing trends of parties, party systems and governance, the book is divided into five key parts besides the introduction and conclusion. The First Part of the book is an attempt to conceptualize the parties and party systems. It begins with an introductory chapter focusing on the salience of parties as democratic wheels of governance. It examines the parties within the framework of both democratic and non-democratic political systems. The Introduction is followed by a theoretical understand- ing of parties and party systems across the world. Interpreting parties through the principle of ‘I4’ which could be located across the world on the basis of locus and focus, the part analyzes the existing typologies of the parties and party systems from Ostrogorski to Peter Meir under three distinct phases, viz., the pre-behavioural era, the behavioural era and the post-behavioural era, with different party theorizations and model-building like C5 – referring to the Cleavage, Catch’ll, Consociational, Cartel and Conservancy Models. The first part attempts to study existing theoretical paradigms under which the Israeli and the Indian party systems could broadly be located. It underlines the Salience of Silence through a shift in electoral politics from floating voters to Silent Voters, which in the case of both Israel and India could be seen from the working of the term M5. ‘Parties and the State Formations’ are the subject of discussion in the Second Part of the book. The first two chapters examine the role played by political parties in the formation of the state in both Israel and India. Introduction xxxi

They underline the formative phase of state-building as undertaken by cultural forces led by the World Zionist Organization on the one hand and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and other Hindu outfits on the other. While the first chapter underlines the role of different political parties in the pre-state period in Israel, called Yishuv, the fourth chapter analyzes the changing role of the Indian parties, particularly the Indian National Congress, in their struggle for independence. This part broadly highlights the predominant position held by the key political parties in the society and polity and their pioneering role in the freedom struggle against British colonial rule, particularly Mapai in Israel and the Indian National Congress in India. The Third Part discusses the transition and transformation of parties and party systems of Israel and India from post-independence to contem- porary times. It analyzes the changing nature of party systems in both these parliamentary polities. While the first chapter presents the predominance of the key parties in the first two decades of their post-independence era under the theorizations Mapaivot and ‘Congress System’, the other chapters delineate the transformation of the party systems from a bipolar or two-party system of the 1970s to the beginning of the coalition era from the 1980s onwards. This transformation is encapsulated by the author under the phrase ‘from predominance to pluralism’. An overview of the ‘Ideological Roots, Social Bases and Electoral Patterns of the Israeli and Indian Parties’ is discussed in Part Four of the book. It attempts to discuss the Israeli and Indian parties under five key chapters, viz., the Socialist Block, Nationalist Block, Centrist Block, Ethno-Religious Block and Arab Block. A comparative analysis is made of the five leading blocks/groups of the parties in these two democratic nations, with a focus on their ideologies, organizations, leadership and electoral base. It also discusses the changing patterns of parties and the emergence of new parties in the twenty-first century under their respective classified blocks or categories in both Israel and India. The Fifth Part of the book discusses the role of ‘Parties in Government Making’. The first chapter discusses the coalitional dynamics in both Israel and India working on the principles of power, pulls and pressures. The chapter also carries out a critical analysis of the Prime Ministerial forms of government in both the countries and examines the changing xxxii Introduction patterns of governance under the compulsions of coalition politics. The second chapter examines the competing issues of governance in both the countries underlining five major areas of govenance, viz., peace and security, religiosity and ethnicity, settlements and infiltration, economy and markets, and scandals and scams. Titled ‘The Way Forward’, the concluding observations summarize the major findings of the work and outline some suggestions for future research. The approach of the author throughout the book has been analytical, empirical and behavioural. The sources used in the work have largely remained secondary, though the primary sources in terms of interviews, sample surveys, and animated discussions with scholars and academicians both in Israel and India have proved beneficial to the outcome of the findings. The book also sheds light on many contemporary issues and challenges in these two parliamentary democracies that need further exploration and research.

References Huntington, S. P. (1997). Democracy for the long haul. In L. Diamond et al. (Eds.), Consolidating the third wave democracies: Themes and perspec- tives. Baltimore/London: The John Hopkins University Press. Michels, R. (1915). Political parties: A sociological study of the oligarchi- cal tendencies of modern democracy (trans: Eden & Paul, C.). New York: Dover Publications.