CUET Political Science Syllabus 2026, Section-Wise Topics

CUET Political Science Syllabus 2026 Overview

The CUET Political Science syllabus and pattern are tabulated in brief below. The exam will be held in CBT mode, and the question paper will be in MCQ format.

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CUET Political Science Exam Pattern 2026

The exam pattern for CUET Political Science, as released by the NTA, is mentioned below:

• The total marks for CUET Political Science are 250 for 50 questions.
• The Political Science question paper will be in MCQ format, with each question worth 5 marks and a negative marking of -1. 
• The duration of the exam is 60 minutes without any sectional time limit.

CUET Political Science Syllabus 2026 (Section-Wise Topics)

The CUET Political Science syllabus consists of the following topics and sub-topics.

Section A: Contemporary World Politics

• Era of One-Party Dominance: First three general elections, the nature of Congress dominance at the National level, uneven dominance at the state level, and the coalitional nature of Congress. Major opposition parties. 
• Nation - Building and Its Problems: Nehru’s approach to nation-building: Legacy of partition: challenge of ‘refugee’ resettlement, the Kashmir problem. Organisation and reorganisation of states; Political conflicts over language. 
• Politics of Planned Development: Five-year plans, expansion of the state sector and the rise of new economic interests. 
• India's External Relations: Nehru’s foreign policy. Sino-Indian war of 1962, Indo-Pak war of 1965 and 1971. India’s nuclear programme and shifting alliance in world politics. 
• Challenge to and Restoration of the Congress System: Political succession after Nehru. Non-Congressism and electoral upset of 1967, Congress split and reconstitution, Congress’ victory in 1971 elections, politics of ‘garibi hatao’. 
• Crises of the Constitutional Order: Search for ‘committed’ bureaucracy and judiciary. Navnirman movement in Gujarat and the Bihar movement. Emergency: context, constitutional and extraconstitutional dimensions, resistance to emergency. The 1977 elections and the formation of the Janata Party. Rise of civil liberties organisations. 
• Regional Aspiration and Conflicts: Rise of regional parties. Punjab crisis and the anti-Sikh riots of 1984. The Kashmir situation. Challenges and responses in the North East. 
• Democratic Upsurge and Coalition Politics: Participatory upsurge in the 1990s. Rise of the JD and the BJP. Increasing role of regional parties and coalition politics. UF and NDA governments. Elections 2004-2019 and the UPA government, with the addition of the NDA government. 
• Recent Issues and Challenges: Challenge of and responses to globalization: new economic policy and its opposition. Rise of OBCs in North Indian politics. Dalit politics in the electoral and non-electoral arena. Challenge of communalism: Ayodhya issue.

Section B: Politics in India Since Independence

• Disintegration of the ‘Second World’ and the Collapse of Bipolarity: New entities in world politics: Russia, Balkan states, Central Asian states, Introduction of democratic politics and capitalism in postcommunist regimes. India’s relations with Russia and other post-communist countries. 
• Alternative Centers of Economic and Political Power: Rise of China as an economic power in postMao era, creation and expansion of the European Union, ASEAN. India’s changing relations with China, Japan and South Korea. 
• South Asia in the Post-Cold War Era: Democratization and its reversals in Pakistan and Nepal. Ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. Impact of economic globalization on the region. Conflicts and efforts for peace in South Asia. India’s relations with its neighbours. 
• International Organizations in a Unipolar World: Restructuring and the Future of the UN. India’s position in the restructured UN. Rise of new international actors: new international economic organisations, NGOs. How democratic and accountable are the new institutions of global governance? 
• Security in the Contemporary World: Traditional concerns of security and politics of disarmament. Non-traditional aspects of human security: global poverty, health and education. Issues of human rights and migration.
• Environment and Natural Resources in Global Politics: Environmental movement and evolution of global environmental norms. Conflicts over traditional and common property resources. Right of indigenous people. India’s stand in global environmental debates. 
• Globalisation and its critics: Economic, cultural and political manifestations. Debates on the nature of the consequences of globalisation. Anti-globalisation movements. India is both an arena of globalisation and a site of resistance to it.

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CUET Political Science Syllabus 2026 PDF Download

Aspirants can download the CUET Political Science syllabus PDF from the link given below.

Download Syllabus PDF

Important Topics in CUET Political Science 2026

An analysis of the CUET Political Science past years’ question papers provides an insight into high-weightage topics. Along with the important topics, CUET aspirants must cover all the topics included in the syllabus to get a good score in CUET 2026.

CUET Political Science Important Chapters	Expected Number of Questions
Recent Developments in Indian Politics	8-9 questions
Globalisation & Environment and Natural Resources	6-7 questions
Challenges to the Congress System	5 questions
Contemporary South Asia	3-4 questions
Alternative Centres of Power	2-3 questions
The End of Bipolarity	2-3 questions
Security in the Contemporary World	2-3 questions
International Organizations	2-3 questions

Find the latest CUET subject-wise syllabus below:

CUET Commerce Syllabus	CUET Humanities Syllabus
CUET Science Syllabus

Best Books for CUET Political Science Preparation

Students can follow the following CUET Political Science books. For these, students must refer to the NCERTs for foundational learning in each topic. 

• NCERTs.
• NTA CUET (UG) Political Science with 20 Solved Practice Papers by VK Global Publications Pvt Ltd
• Go To Guide for CUET (UG) Political Science with 10 Practice Sets by Disha Experts
• NTA CUET (UG) 10 CUET Mock Test Papers for Political Science by Oswaal Editorial Board

CUET Political Science Previous Year Question Papers

Go through the CUET Political Science past years’ question papers PDF provided below. Practice questions and understand the weightage of each topic, the difficulty level and the marking scheme. 

CUET Political Science Question Paper	Download PDF
CUET Political Science Question Paper 2025	Check Here
CUET Political Science Question Paper 2024	Check Here
CUET Political Science Question Paper 2023	Check Here
CUET Political Science Question Paper 2022	Check Here

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CUET Study Material	CUET UG Answer Key
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CUET Domain Subjects	CUET Question Paper
CUET Phase 1 & Phase 2	CUET Total Marks
CUET Counselling	CUET Compulsory Subjects

Preparation Tips for CUET Political Science 2026

Here are a few tips you may include in your CUET Political Science preparation strategy:

• Check the syllabus and pattern of CUET Political Science.
• Now, review the strategies of the toppers and the books they referred to during their CUET preparation. Get hold of CUET Political Science books and clear your basic concepts.
• We recommend that students take notes and revise them regularly to retain key information.
• Practice PYQs and take CUET mock tests weekly or regularly to understand your strengths and weaknesses.

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CUET UG Subject List 2026: Syllabus and Question Paper

With these, NTA also offers 1 general aptitude test. Students can choose up to 5 subjects, including a general aptitude test and a language subject, irrespective of the subjects they studied in class 12. You can check the CUET question papers and syllabus in the following table.

CUET Domain Subjects	Subject-wise CUET Syllabus	Question Paper
History	CUET History Syllabus	Check Here
Political Science	CUET Political Science Syllabus	Check Here
Geography	CUET Geography Syllabus	Check Here
Psychology	CUET Psychology Syllabus	Check Here
Home Science	CUET Home Science Syllabus	Check Here
Mass Media/Mass Communication	CUET Mass Media/Mass Communication Syllabus	Check Here
Sociology	CUET Sociology Syllabus	Check Here
Sanskrit	CUET Sanskrit Syllabus	Check Here
Physical Education	CUET Physical Education Syllabus	Check Here
Knowledge Tradition- Practices in India	CUET Knowledge Tradition- Practices in India Syllabus	Check Here
Performing Arts	CUET Performing Arts Syllabus	Check Here
Environmental Science	CUET Environmental Science Syllabus	Check Here
Computer Science	CUET Computer Science Syllabus	Check Here
Economics	CUET Economics Syllabus	Check Here
Mathematics	CUET Mathematics Syllabus	Check Here
Accountancy	CUET Accountancy Syllabus	Check Here
Agriculture	CUET Agriculture Syllabus	Check Here
Anthropology	CUET Anthropology Syllabus	Check Here
Biology	CUET Biology Syllabus	Check Here
Business Studies	CUET Business Studies Syllabus	Check Here
Chemistry	CUET Chemistry Syllabus	Check Here
Physics	CUET Physics Syllabus	Check Here
General Aptitude Test	CUET General Aptitude Test Syllabus	Check Here

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