An Introduction to Political Culture in India

The nature of political culture depends on beliefs and orientations of the mass towards the political system and the response of the authority and the process to the orientations. Sometimes the process is participatory when the members of the society take active part in the political process and seeks benefits from the process. In the same time, it may be subject political culture when the common people know very little about the process and do not expect any share in the decision making process. Every political system has its own destined culture. The culture of an authoritarian government is quite different from the culture of a democratic country. Again there are differences in the culture of new democracy and modern democracies. Political culture is not static or fixed. It is a dynamic and an ever changing process. Political culture goes on changing and changing. It changes as a result of new ideas, structural changes in the system, new innovations, demographic change and changes in the international political environment and of many other factors. Incorporating these changes it continues from one generation to another generation. The socialization process transmitted the culture generation by generations and provides stability to the system. Political consensus on values is a must for political system to survive and confront pressures, conflict and crisis emerging from time to time. It relates to political culture which is a sub-structure of each political system. Political culture at all levels support the system. It provides the necessary legitimacy to the system and makes the system sustainable for a time being. It encompasses both the political ideals and the operating norms of a political system.