Popular Struggles and Movements

Why this chapter matters for UPSC: "Popular Struggles and Movements" was Chapter 5 of Democratic Politics II in the 2020-21 edition. NCERT's rationalisation removed it, and the current book (Reprint 2026-27) has five chapters, ending with "Outcomes of Democracy". This page keeps the dropped chapter, labelled as such, because GS2 still asks about its subject. Mains has asked how pressure groups influence the Indian political process and whether informal pressure groups have become more powerful than formal ones (2017), to assess the structure and functioning of pressure groups as "the informal face of politics" (2013), how business associations contribute to public policy (2021), and whether civil society and NGOs can offer an alternative model of public service delivery (2021).

Contemporary hook: Both of the chapter's lessons have been tested since the edition was printed. In Nepal, the chapter's first case, anti-corruption protests led by young people, in which 76 people were killed, toppled the government in September 2025; after the election of 5 March 2026, Balendra Shah became Prime Minister (Al Jazeera, 27 March 2026). In India, farmers camped on the outskirts of Delhi from November 2020 against three farm laws (Associated Press, 19 November 2021); on 19 November 2021 the Prime Minister announced that the government had "decided to withdraw all three agricultural laws" (PIB), and Parliament passed the repeal bill on 29 November 2021 (PRS).

🧠 First Principles — Read This First

Democracy runs on conflict. The chapter opens: "Democracy almost invariably involves conflict of interests and viewpoints. These differences are often expressed in organised ways. Those who are in power are required to balance these conflicting demands and pressures." NCERT's earlier chapters asked how power is shared; this one asks how those who hold power are held in check by pressure from outside government.

Two ways to take part. The direct way is "creating parties, contesting elections and forming governments". Many citizens do not, so they use indirect ways: forming organisations to promote their interests or viewpoints ("interest groups or pressure groups"), or acting together without forming organisations at all. This chapter covers the indirect ways; the next chapter in the 2020-21 book (Political Parties, page 06 of this book) covered the direct way.

Struggle builds democracy. From its two cases NCERT draws three conclusions: democracy evolves through popular struggles; democratic conflict is resolved through mass mobilisation; and these conflicts and mobilisations are based on new political organisations.

Influence, not power. The key distinction of the chapter: "unlike political parties, pressure groups do not aim to directly control or share political power."

A balanced verdict. NCERT weighs the charge that such groups wield "power without responsibility" and concludes: "On balance, however, pressure groups and movements have deepened democracy."

PART 1 — Quick Reference

Table 1: Nepal's movement for democracy (NCERT's account)

Source: NCERT, Democratic Politics II, Class X, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition (reprint January 2020), pp. 58-59, as archived by the Wayback Machine, 9 October 2021.

Table 2: Bolivia's water war, 2000 (NCERT's account)

Source: NCERT, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition, pp. 60 and 62. NCERT gives the water bills in rupees.

Table 3: Two struggles compared

Source: NCERT, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition, pp. 60-62.

Table 4: Party, pressure group, movement

Source: NCERT, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition, pp. 63-67.

Table 5: Sectional and public interest groups

Source: NCERT, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition, pp. 64-65.

Table 6: Two kinds of movement

Source: NCERT, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition, pp. 65-66.

Table 7: Pressure groups and parties: three relationships

Source: NCERT, ch. 5, 2020-21 edition, p. 67.

PART 2 — Concepts & Narrative

Popular struggles in Nepal and Bolivia

NCERT links the chapter to the Class IX story of Poland, where people made democracy, and then tells "two recent stories of that kind".

Nepal. "Nepal witnessed an extraordinary popular movement in April 2006. The movement was aimed at restoring democracy." Nepal had won democracy in 1990, with the king as formal head of state. King Birendra accepted this, but after his death in 2001 King Gyanendra "was not prepared to accept democratic rule". He used the weakness and unpopularity of the elected government, and in February 2005 dismissed the Prime Minister and dissolved Parliament. The April 2006 movement aimed at "regaining popular control over the government from the king".

The parties in Parliament formed the Seven Party Alliance and called a four-day strike in Kathmandu. It became an indefinite strike, joined by Maoist insurgents and other organisations; people defied the curfew, and the security forces could not handle the daily crowds. The leaders rejected the king's "half-hearted concessions" and held to three demands. On 24 April 2006 the king gave in. Girija Prasad Koirala became Prime Minister of an interim government, the restored parliament stripped the king of most powers, and the SPA and the Maoists agreed on how the Constituent Assembly would be elected. NCERT ends: "The struggle of the Nepali people is a source of inspiration to democrats all over the world."

Bolivia. "But the role of popular struggles does not come to an end with the establishment of democracy." Bolivia, "a poor country in Latin America", was a democracy when the World Bank pressed it to give up control of municipal water. The company that bought the Cochabamba rights quadrupled prices, and the response was "a spontaneous popular protest". A general strike in January 2000 led to talks that went nowhere; repression in February and martial law in April did not stop it, and the government gave in. "This came to be known as Bolivia's water war."

Democracy and popular struggles

The two cases differ. Nepal's movement was "to establish democracy", Bolivia's struggle "involved claims on an elected, democratic government"; one was about the foundations of politics, the other about one policy. Both succeeded, at different levels. But they share four elements: political conflict that led to a popular struggle, mass mobilisation, a public show of mass support that "clinched the dispute", and the "critical role of political organisations".

From this NCERT draws three conclusions:

1. "Democracy evolves through popular struggles." Some decisions come by consensus, but that is the exception. "Defining moments of democracy usually involve conflict between those groups who have exercised power and those who aspire for a share in power." They come at times of "transition to democracy, expansion of democracy or deepening of democracy", the same three stages NCERT used in Chapter 8 (page 08).
2. "Democratic conflict is resolved through mass mobilisation." Sometimes institutions such as parliament or the judiciary settle a conflict. "But when there is a deep dispute, very often these institutions themselves get involved in the dispute. The resolution has to come from outside, from the people."
3. "These conflicts and mobilisations are based on new political organisations." There is spontaneity in every such moment, "But the spontaneous public participation becomes effective with the help of organised politics." The agencies of organised politics are "political parties, pressure groups and movement groups".

NCERT's margin figures ask the obvious objections: are strikes, dharnas and bandhs good for democracy, and does the bigger crowd always win ("Are we saying that 'Might is Right' in a democracy?"). The chapter leaves the student to argue these, and its last section answers the broader version of the question.

Mobilisation and organisations

Many kinds of organisation stood behind each struggle. In Nepal the SPA, which "included some big parties that had some members in the Parliament", was not alone: the Maoists, "all the major labour unions and their federations", and organisations of indigenous people, teachers, lawyers and human rights groups joined. Bolivia's protest "was not led by any political party"; FEDECOR led it, with farmers, workers' unions, students and street children behind it.

These organisations work in two ways. The direct way is competitive politics. But many citizens "may not have the desire, the need or the skills to take part in direct political activity other than voting", so they use indirect ways: forming an organisation to promote their interests or views, or acting together without one.

Pressure groups and movements

A movement is different. "Like an interest group, a movement also attempts to influence politics rather than directly take part in electoral competition. But unlike the interest groups, movements have a loose organisation. Their decision making is more informal and flexible. They depend much more on spontaneous mass participation than an interest group."

Sectional interest groups. Usually interest groups "seek to promote the interests of a particular section or group of society": trade unions, business associations, and professional bodies of lawyers, doctors and teachers. They are sectional because they represent one section, and "Their principal concern is the betterment and well-being of their members, not society in general."

Public interest groups. Others defend "some common or general interest", and their members "may not benefit from the cause that the organisation represents". FEDECOR and Nepal's human rights organisations are NCERT's examples. "These second type of groups are called promotional groups or public interest groups. They promote collective rather than selective good." A group fighting bonded labour "fights not for itself but for those who are suffering under such bondage". In some cases members benefit along with others: BAMCEF (Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation), "largely made up of government employees that campaigns against caste discrimination", addresses its own members' problems, but "its principal concern is with social justice and social equality for the entire society."

Movement groups

"Most of the movements are issue-specific movements that seek to achieve a single objective within a limited time frame. Others are more general or generic movements that seek to achieve a broad goal in the very long term."

Nepal's movement had the specific aim of reversing the king's orders. In India, NCERT's example is the Narmada Bachao Andolan. It began with "the specific issue of the people displaced by the creation of Sardar Sarovar dam on the Narmada river", and its objective "was to stop the dam from being constructed". It grew into "a wider movement that questioned all such big dams and the model of development that required such dams." NCERT's general point: "Movements of this kind tend to have a clear leadership and some organisation. But their active life is usually short."

Long-term movements involve more than one issue. "There is no single organisation that controls or guides such movements." The environmental movement "is a label for a large number of organisations and issue-specific movements", each with its own leadership and often its own views, but sharing "a broad objective" and "a similar approach". Some have a loose umbrella: the National Alliance for Peoples' Movements (NAPM) "is an organisation of organisations" that coordinates many peoples' movements.

How do they influence politics?

NCERT lists four methods:

• Public opinion: "information campaigns, organising meetings, filing petitions, etc.", and efforts to get the media to give the issue more attention.
• Protest: strikes or disrupting government programmes. "Workers' organisations, employees' associations and most of the movement groups often resort to these tactics in order to force the government to take note of their demands."
• Money and access: "Business groups often employ professional lobbyists or sponsor expensive advertisements."
• Inside the system: "Some persons from pressure groups or movement groups may participate in official bodies and committees that offer advice to the government."

They also try to influence parties. "Most of the movement groups take a political stance without being a party." Their relationship with parties takes the three forms in Table 7, from extended arms of a party, to parties born of movements, to the commonest case of opposed positions combined with "dialogue and negotiation".

Is their influence healthy?

The doubts. A democracy must look after all, not one section, yet sectional groups push one section's interest. "Also, it may seem that these groups wield power without responsibility. Political parties have to face the people in elections, but these groups are not accountable to the people." Their funds may not come from the people, and "pressure groups with small public support but lots of money can hijack public discussion in favour of their narrow agenda."

NCERT's verdict. "On balance, however, pressure groups and movements have deepened democracy." Pressure on rulers "is not an unhealthy activity in a democracy as long as everyone gets this opportunity." Public interest groups and movements counter the "undue pressure from a small group of rich and powerful people" and remind the government of ordinary citizens' needs. Even sectional groups help: where many groups are active, "no one single group can achieve dominance over society", each pressure meets counter-pressure, and the result is "a rough balance of power and accommodation of conflicting interests."

Where this chapter's ideas sit in the current book

The rationalised book keeps three traces of this chapter. Chapter 1, "Power-sharing" (page 01 of this book), says power sharing "can also be seen in the way political parties, pressure groups and movements control or influence those in power." Chapter 4, "Political Parties" (page 06), notes that "Many of the pressure groups are the extensions of political parties among different sections of society", NCERT's first relationship in Table 7. And its section on reforming parties says citizens can put pressure on parties "through petitions, publicity and agitations", adding that "Ordinary citizens, pressure groups and movements and the media can play an important role in this."

PART 3 — UPSC Integration

Frames for Mains Answers

1. How pressure groups influence the political process. Define with NCERT: influence without seeking power. Then the four methods (public opinion, protest, lobbying and advertising, membership of advisory bodies) and the three relationships with parties. Close with NCERT's balance test: healthy "as long as everyone gets this opportunity".

2. Formal and informal groups. Use NCERT's contrast between interest groups (organised, member-based) and movements ("loose organisation", "spontaneous mass participation"). For the 2017 question, the farmers' protests of 2020-21 are a dated example of a loose coalition of unions, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha, achieving the repeal of three laws within about a year.

3. Business associations and public policy. NCERT's sectional groups and its line that business groups "employ professional lobbyists or sponsor expensive advertisements". Weigh the expertise and feedback they give against the risk NCERT names: groups with "small public support but lots of money can hijack public discussion".

4. Civil society and service delivery. Use public interest groups ("collective rather than selective good") and NCERT's point that they counter the undue influence of the rich. Then the accountability gap: such groups "are not accountable to the people". The RTI Act shows a movement changing how the state serves citizens rather than replacing it.

5. Do popular struggles strengthen democracy? NCERT's three conclusions, with Nepal (2006, and again 2025-26) and Bolivia as cases, Kittiko-Hachchiko and the NBA as Indian ones. Add the limit: mobilisation decides only when institutions are themselves part of the dispute, and courts may still rule against a movement (NBA, 2000).

Exam Strategy

Prelims fact-traps:

• Nepal's king dismissed the Prime Minister and dissolved Parliament in February 2005; the movement was in April 2006, and the king gave in on 24 April 2006.
• The three demands of 2006 were restoration of parliament, an all-party government and a new constituent assembly. Abolition of the monarchy came later, in 2008.
• In NCERT's account, the World Bank, not the IMF, pressed Bolivia to give up municipal water supply.
• Bolivia's protest was led by FEDECOR, not by a party; the Socialist Party only supported it.
• NCERT treats "interest groups" and "pressure groups" as the same thing; the contrast is with movements.
• BAMCEF is a public interest group even though its members also benefit.
• The Narmada Bachao Andolan is NCERT's example of an issue-specific movement; the environmental and women's movements are its generic ones.
• The Asom Gana Parishad grew out of the Assam movement; the DMK and AIADMK trace back to a social reform movement of the 1930s and 1940s.
• NAPM is "an organisation of organisations", not a party.

Practice Questions

NCERT's multiple-choice exercises 7-10 are questions 1-4 (NCERT prints no answer key; the answers are worked from the chapter). Practice (UPSC-pattern, not past papers): questions 5-8.

1. (NCERT exercise 7) Which among the following is the special feature that distinguishes a pressure group from a political party?
(a) Parties take political stances, while pressure groups do not bother about political issues.
(b) Pressure groups are confined to a few people, while parties involve larger number of people.
(c) Pressure groups do not seek to get into power, while political parties do.
(d) Pressure groups do not seek to mobilise people, while parties do.

Answer: (c). NCERT's definition: pressure groups "do not aim to directly control or share political power".

2. (NCERT exercise 8) Match List I with List II. List I: 1. Organisations that seek to promote the interests of a particular section or group; 2. Organisations that seek to promote common interest; 3. Struggles launched for the resolution of a social problem with or without an organisational structure; 4. Organisations that mobilise people with a view to win political power. List II: A. Movement; B. Political parties; C. Sectional interest groups; D. Public interest groups.
(a) C D B A
(b) C D A B
(c) D C B A
(d) B C D A

Answer: (b). 1-C, 2-D, 3-A, 4-B.

3. (NCERT exercise 9) Match List I with List II. List I: 1. Pressure group; 2. Long-term movement; 3. Single issue movement; 4. Political party. List II: A. Narmada Bachao Andolan; B. Asom Gana Parishad; C. Women's movement; D. Fertilizer dealers' association.
(a) D C A B
(b) B A D C
(c) C D B A
(d) B D C A

Answer: (a). 1-D, 2-C, 3-A, 4-B.

4. (NCERT exercise 10) Consider the following statements about pressure groups and parties. A. Pressure groups are the organised expression of the interests and views of specific social sections. B. Pressure groups take positions on political issues. C. All pressure groups are political parties. Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) A, B, and C
(b) A and B
(c) B and C
(d) A and C

Answer: (b). Statement C contradicts NCERT's definition.

5. Consider the following statements about Bolivia's water war as NCERT describes it:
1. FEDECOR, which led the protest, comprised local professionals including engineers and environmentalists.
2. The protest was led by the Socialist Party.
3. The contract was cancelled and water supply was restored to the municipality at old rates.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1 and 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b). NCERT says the protest "was not led by any political party"; the Socialist Party supported it.

6. Which of the following was NOT one of the three demands of Nepal's movement of April 2006?
(a) Restoration of parliament
(b) Power to an all-party government
(c) A new constituent assembly
(d) Abolition of the monarchy

Answer: (d). The monarchy was abolished in 2008, after the Constituent Assembly was elected.

7. In NCERT's classification, BAMCEF is best described as:
(a) a sectional interest group whose only concern is its members
(b) a public interest group whose members also benefit from its work
(c) a political party formed out of a movement
(d) an issue-specific movement with a short active life

Answer: (b). It addresses its members' problems, but its principal concern is "social justice and social equality for the entire society".

8. Consider the following statements:
1. The three farm laws repealed in 2021 had been passed by Parliament in September 2020.
2. The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 was introduced and passed in both Houses on the same day.
3. The decision to withdraw the laws was announced by the President in an address to Parliament.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Answer: (b). The Prime Minister announced the decision in an address to the nation on 19 November 2021 (PIB); the bill was introduced and passed on 29 November 2021 (PRS).

NCERT exercises (short answer): 1. In what ways do pressure groups and movements exert influence on politics? (the four methods, plus influence on parties) 2. Describe the forms of relationship between pressure groups and political parties. (Table 7) 3. Explain how the activities of pressure groups are useful in the functioning of a democratic government. (NCERT's verdict: counter undue influence, balance of interests) 4. What is a pressure group? Give a few examples. 5. What is the difference between a pressure group and a political party? 6. Organisations that undertake activities to promote the interests of specific social sections such as workers, employees, teachers, and lawyers are called ____ groups. (sectional interest) 11. The Mewat case: what relationship among movement, parties and government does it show? (box above)

📦 Revision Capsule

Sources

• NCERT, Democratic Politics II, Textbook in Political Science for Class X, ch. 5 "Popular Struggles and Movements", 2020-21 edition (file jess405.pdf in the whole-book zip), as archived on 9 October 2021 — Wayback Machine.
• NCERT, Democratic Politics II, ch. 1 "Power-sharing", Reprint 2026-27 — ncert.nic.in PDF; ch. 4 "Political Parties", Reprint 2026-27 — ncert.nic.in PDF.
• Al Jazeera, on Nepal's new Prime Minister being sworn in, 27 March 2026 — aljazeera.com.
• US Department of State, Background Note: Nepal (archived), on the Constituent Assembly's first session of 28 May 2008 — 2009-2017.state.gov.
• UN News, "Secretary-General congratulates first President of Nepal", 22 July 2008 — news.un.org.
• The Kathmandu Post, on the promulgation of Nepal's Constitution, 21 September 2015 — kathmandupost.com.
• NPR, on Evo Morales's inauguration as President of Bolivia, 22 January 2006 — npr.org.
• PIB (Prime Minister's Office), "Prime Minister addresses the Nation", 19 November 2021 — PIB 1773138.
• PRS Legislative Research, The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, 2021 — prsindia.org.
• Associated Press (via CBC), on the decision to repeal the farm laws, 19 November 2021 — cbc.ca.
• The Right to Information Act, 2005 (No. 22 of 2005), Central Information Commission's copy — cic.gov.in PDF.
• Supreme Court of India, Narmada Bachao Andolan v Union of India, judgment of 18 October 2000.