UPSC Mains 2026 GS2 Q15: model answer

In a pluralist democracy, power is shared among many organised groups, not only parties. In India, pressure groups and movements have often been the voice of those whom parties ignore.

How they deepen democracy

• Social movements: the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan's campaign led to the RTI Act, 2005; the right-to-food campaign shaped the NFSA, 2013; Chipko and Narmada Bachao raised ecological and displacement issues.
• Farmer, Dalit, tribal and women's groups brought agrarian distress, atrocities and gender justice to the agenda.
• Trade and industry bodies (CII, FICCI) bring technical inputs into policy, for example on GST and the Insolvency Code.

Limits

• Poorly resourced groups (informal workers, migrants) remain weakly represented.
• Some movements turn into vote banks or get captured by elites.

Corporate wealth and political power: a threat?

• Opaque funding: in Association for Democratic Reforms v Union of India (Feb 2024) the Supreme Court struck down the Electoral Bond Scheme for violating voters' right to information, noting the risk of quid pro quo.
• Policy capture: 'crony capitalism' concerns in licensing, natural resources and regulatory decisions.
• Media concentration and the costs of elections raise barriers for ordinary candidates.
• Revolving doors between regulators and industry.

Safeguards

• Transparent political funding and spending caps for parties; State funding of elections (Indrajit Gupta Committee).
• A regulated lobbying disclosure law, cooling-off periods and stronger regulators (CCI, SEBI).
• Strengthen the Election Commission, the Lokpal and parliamentary committees.

Conclusion: plural voices strengthen Indian democracy; unregulated money weakens it. Transparency is the line between legitimate advocacy and capture.