NDA General Studies History Questions Part 1

The Russian Social Democratic Labour Party was founded in 1898 by the socialists who respected Marx’s ideas. It set up a newspaper, mobilised workers and organised strikes. Socialists formed the Socialist Revolutionary Party in 1900. This party struggled for peasants’ right and demanded that land belonging to nobles be transferred to peasants. Vladimir Lenin (who led the Bolshevik group) thought that in a repressive society like Tsarist Russia, the party should be disciplined and should control the number and quality of its members.
Mensheviks were the minority group of the workers of Russia. They believed in parliamentary methods and participation in elections. They thought that the party should be open to all. They favoured parties as were existing in France and Germany, which took part in elections to the legislatures. Whereas the Bolsheviks argued that the working class should lead the revolution in alliance with the peasantry, the Mensheviks envisaged its being led by the bourgeoisie and favoured alliances with the liberals.