Coalition Government

Coalition Government- Merits and De-merits

When we think about the coalition government, an opinion may come into our mind that it is an unstable form of government. It needs to make the balance between both the parties while making the coalition government. The minister of the [coalition government] has to listen to the demands of both parties. To take the majority decision on a topic becomes tougher due to the different opinions of both political parties and the fear that comes into mind that this government can dissolute anytime.

In the article on a coalition government, we will discuss such types of problems related to the [coalition government].

Coalition government definition

The coalition government is a type of new government in which two or more political parties co-operate to form the government. In such types of government, the parties give their consent by giving their seats to another party so that they mutually can make a government.

The [coalition government] is known as गठबंधन सरकार in Hindi.

A form of government in which a single party forms the government is called the government. These two types of Government are different from each other. Now, the question arises that why we need a [coalition government] when we have the majority form of government?

The reason behind the [coalition government] is that a single party has failed to win the specified seats to take the majority in elections and it needs more seats to make the government.

In Simple Words, when a political party fails to get the prescribed seats to make the majority government, they collaborate with another political party to get some seats and form a new government with them which is known as the coalition government.

The example of the coalition government

In Bihar, there is an election on 200 seats between three political parties. To form a majority government, a party needs 100 seats. But as the result of the elections comes, a party X get 98 seats, Y get 90 seats and Z gets 12 sets only. Now, in this situation, there will be the formation of a coalition government. Any of the parties can collaborate with another political party for the government.

Meaning of coalition government

The coalition government can be considered as a partnership between two or more political parties. What is a coalition? The term coalition is taken from the Latin word coalition which means “to grow together”. In simple words, we can say that the meaning of coalition government is an act to unite the different political parties to make one government.

A [coalition government] can also be created at the time of National difficulty or any other crisis to the nation.  These difficulties can be like war, emergency or economic crises. The purpose to make the coalition government at that time is to provide the best government to the nation to deal with the difficulties.

Now, the question arises that which government is the best for the national coalition government of majority government? As per the experienced advocates and political persons, the majority government is more stable than the coalition government (CG). The reason behind this fact is that CG is the collaboration of two or more parties. Their thinking, opinions and motives can be different from each other which may arise conflict between parties and consequently, they become incapable to take right decisions.

Features of the coalition government (CG)

There are the following features of the coalition government:

  • There must be at least two political parties to make the CG
  • It is a temporary form of government to achieve the specific interest. After breaking the interest, the government will dissolute
  • It is not static but it is a dynamic affair
  • In CG, one party cannot dominate over another party.

Merits of the coalition government

  • There is unity in diversity in India. In CG, every person belonging to any diverse group may get the chance to represent.
  • The government will follow a different ideology
  • It is the collaboration of two or more parties where the parties can share their opinions and agendas with each other to make the right decisions.
  • It strengthens the federal fabric of the Indian political system
  • This form of government is more capable to solve the problems
  • The powers will not lie only in the hand of one party. It is the distribution of powers between two parties.

De-merits of the coalition government

  • It is an unstable form of government due to different opinions among the partners
  • The government can collapse anytime
  • It decreases the power of the PM to take decisions. He has to discuss with other parties to take the decision.
  • It has to build a steering committee. In this committee, all the heads of the different parties are members of this committee. Sometimes, these committee members create problems to take the decision in a particular area.
  • The parties which are not more in strength and seats will play the role of the king makes and demand more than their strength in the parliament.
  • The leaders from regional parties may bring the regional factors in the national decision making.
  • Different parties may pressurize the head of the government to act on their decisions
  • It becomes tough to build proper coordination
  • No one wants to take responsibility for the party.

The first coalition government in India

The first coalition government in India was the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in which Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister. This government competed for a total of 5 years from 1999 to 2004.

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Conclusion

It is the formation of government by joining two or more parties to make one government. Every party has the right to give their opinions to make the decision while making and laws and rules.

It is not a stable form of government because any of the parties can take its position back and the government will collapse. There are many pros and cons related to such a government. If it gets successful to make the stable, then it is the best form of government to solve the public issues.


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