Etymologically the word "party" has been derived from the word "part". It refers to a situation in which there exists either a controversy or competition between two or more groups of people within a particular society or political order.
Etymologically the word "party" has been derived from the word "part". It refers to a situation in which there exists either a controversy or competition between two or more groups of people within a particular society or political order. The political parties are determinants of political power in all societies irrespective of their open or closed nature. They are quite firmly established as basic instruments for controlling governmental activities and there is practically no chance of their disappearance from either democracies or totalitarian societies. In pluralist political systems the parties attempt to influence the actions of political decision makers and organize themselves to compete for political power. The party system in a democratic country is of greater significance than the nature of the government, viz. parliamentary or presidential. The party to a great extent determine the personnel and politics of government and it is perhaps most important among political groups other than the government. "Political parties perform a definite social function. The party in power rarely initiates new programmes after having been in authority for any length of time. It generally has more than it can do in fulfilling pre-election promises. The party not in control renders a service in prodding up the party in power, and in insisting that the latter live up to its promises. The party out of power usually stands for new measures in order to bid successfully for the suffrage of the people”. Political parties have assumed special interest during contemporary period because in our age successful social action depends essentially upon large-scale organizations. The individual in comparison to the organized group is a non-entity. The parties, therefore, act as the key agents of political power in open as well as in closed societies. Party system organizes workable political choices and seeks the support of the voters from them. The parties are voluntary organizations and the members are attracted to them because membership does not involve much of burden and at the same time there are expectations of getting rewards. A political party displays political goods and also tries to produce an assured market for itself.
Political parties, in true sense of the term, came into existence about a century back. It was preceded by cliques, gangs, factions, lobbies, popular clubs, philosophical societies, parliamentary groups, and trends of opinion. The United States of America was the only country in the world, in the years 1850, where political parties in the modern sense originated. After that within one hundred years political parties came into being in most of the civilized countries of the world. Political parties, therefore, can be described as comparatively a recent phenomenon, which differ markedly in forms and development from the organizations that preceded them. The origins of the political party system can be attributed to several causes. One of the important factors, which can be named in connection with the origin of party system, is the expansion of suffrage and beginning of representative government during the nineteenth century in America and Europe. A political party at that period was conceived as group of political party it at that period as well as was conceived as group of persons entering into an electoral contest with one or other such groups in order to capture public office. In due course those organizations, which were not directly, involved in political contests, such as, the revolutionary parties, which did not believe in the dictatorial or totalitarian States, and also the small organizations which could not probably create any direct impact on the results of electoral contests were also regarded as political parties. A political party, therefore, can be taken as the outcome of a complex political system, which needs the growth of appropriate political forms. When the political system becomes so complex so as to require the support of the larger public for those who want to capture power and to retain it, the situation becomes quite vulnerable for the origin of political parties. Such complexities appear to a great extent due to the social crisis, such as the crisis of legitimacy, participation, and integration. Some of the earliest parties in Europe were the outcome of crisis of legitimacy that followed the increasing demands for participation and attack against the centralized authority and the legitimacy of the existing structure of authority. Legitimacy crisis often gives rise to the nationalist movements sponsored by small groups of persons demanding participation of the people of indigenous origin in the policies of the country. These people also attempt to increase their influence on the alien rulers to concede to their demands. In case of refusal of the alien rulers to meet their demands the nationalist groups seek the support of the people and thus develop a political organization. The small category of men forming the nationalist group, however, cannot work as an effective decision making organization when the problem of political recruitment and participation of new sections of people in political process increase after the evolution of parliament and also when the volume of the electorate becomes larger. In such a situation the necessity for new modes of political organizations is felt in order to organize the new electorate. Nationalist movements cause the development of political parties outside the framework of government and they are often of the nature of mass parties, which try to unite the different elements of the society for the achievement of self-rule. Forces of dissension, viz. the traditional cleavages based on tribal, ethnic or religious background makes their appearance after the achievement of independence.
