Economic Ideology in Indian Politics: Why Do Elite and Mass Politics Differ?
| Published date | 01 December 2023 |
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1177/23210230231209450 |
| Author | Rahul Verma,Pradeep K. Chhibber |
| Date | 01 December 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Special Section: The Indian Voter |
Economic Ideology in Indian
Politics: Why Do Elite and Mass
Politics Differ?
Rahul Verma1 and Pradeep K. Chhibber2
Abstract
A long line of scholarship has argued that ideological division structures party politics in many parts
of the world. In India, however, there is a long-held consensus that the parties do not sort themselves
ideologically, especially regarding economic policymaking. The paper analyses National Election Studies
data between 1996 and 2019 by Lokniti-CSDS, and shows that voters cluster around the centre-left
position on economic issues. Nevertheless, there are discernible ideological differences among the party
members. The Bhartiya Janata Party members are more likely to favour privatisation, and members of Left
parties prefer labour rights. These ideological differences are also evident in our analysis of the manifestos
of political parties since 1952 and an expert survey conducted in 2022. We argue that these elite differ-
ences in economic policy do not translate into mass politics because all political parties present the State
as the solution to economic deprivation. The rise of welfare populism in Indian politics in the past two
decades, we suggest, is a result of centralisation within political parties in which the welfare promises are
directly linked to the party leaders.
Keywords
Class divide, economic ideology, elite politics, mass politics, party system, welfare politics
Introduction
Ideological division structures party systems and politics in many parts of the world (Bartels, 2013).
In India, however, there is a long-held consensus that the parties do not sort themselves ideologically,
especially regarding economic policymaking (Kothari, 1964; Rudolph & Rudolph, 1987; Yadav &
Palshikar, 2006).3 Scholars have argued that all parties pursue broadly similar policies, no matter what
1 Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi, India
2 Political Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
3 Reviewing party system change in India, Yadav and Palshikar (2006) make two observations. In the last few decades, the
multiplicity of political parties created more options for the electorates on the electoral menu. Yet, the choices available to
Original Article
Studies in Indian Politics
11(2) 274–288, 2023
© 2023 Lokniti, Centre for the
Study of Developing Societies
Article reuse guidelines:
in.sagepub.com/journals-permissions-india
DOI: 10.1177/23210230231209450
journals.sagepub.com/home/inp
Corresponding author:
Rahul Verma, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi 110021, India.
E-mail: rahulverma@cprindia.org
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