Democracy in India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
India is considered by some to have the world's largest democracy. Elections in India started with the 1951–52 Indian general election. India was one of the first few countries in the world to adopt universal adult franchise right from independence, granting both men and women equal voting rights.
In recent years, under the premiership of Narendra Modi, India has experienced significant democratic backsliding. The Economist Democracy Index classifies India as a flawed democracy.[1] The Freedom House classifies India as partly free.[2]
Structure
Constitution
The constitution of India is the supreme legal document of the country and the longest written national constitution in the world.[3] It declares India to be a sovereign, socialist, secular, and democratic republic.[4] It establishes the framework that defines the fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions. It also sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens. The day of adoption of the constitution is celebrated every year on 26 January as Republic Day.[5][6]
Reservation
Reservation is a form of affirmative action that was established during the British Raj.[7] It reserves seats for "socially and economically backward citizens" in higher education admissions, employment, political bodies, etc.[8] Part XVI of the Constitution deals with reservation in the legislature.[9] In 2023, Parliament passed the One Hundred and Sixth Amendment of the Constitution of India, which reserves 33% of legislative seats for women,[10] with the aim of implementation by 2047.[11]
History
Summarize
Perspective
Pre-modern history
Early Shakyas, Koliyas, Mallakas, and Licchavis are recorded as having assemblies that were accessible to affluent men of certain social classes.[12] Other saṅghas and gaṇas had councils of unelected nobles; these bodies did not conform to modern standards of democracy and functioned more similarly to elite oligarchic councils. The Greek historian Diodorus, writing approximately two centuries after the time of Alexander the Great, refers to democratic states in India.[13] However, there is a lack of evidence for electoral processes, and the term "democracy" in the 3rd century BCE may have referred more broadly to autonomous polities rather than representative governance.[14][15] In the 10th century CE, inscriptions at the Vaikunda Perumal Temple suggest the election of local representatives to village councils during the Chola Empire.[16][17][18]
Independence from colonial rule
Following nearly two centuries of British colonial rule—initially under the East India Company[19] and later under direct governance by the British Crown[20]—India gained independence in 1947 after a sustained nationalist anti-colonial movement.[21] This movement was predominantly led by the Indian National Congress[22] (INC; also known simply as the "Congress") and prominent figures such as Mahatma Gandhi[23] and Jawaharlal Nehru.[24] The independence process was marred by a surge of religious and communal divisions, culminating in a bloody partition, characterised by widespread violence and one of the largest refugee crises in history.[25][26][27] India formally became a sovereign, democratic republic in 1950 with the adoption of the world's longest written constitution,[3] and held its first general election between late 1951 and early 1952, implementing universal adult franchise and drawing heavy inspiration from the Westminster system.[28][29] The Congress secured a decisive electoral victory and Nehru was elected as the first prime minister of the country.[30] This established India as the world's largest liberal democracy.[31][32]
Nehruvian era
After independence, the Congress emerged as India's dominant political party, winning landslide victories in the 1957 and 1962 general elections. Nehru remains the longest-serving holder of the office of the prime minister, having led the country for sixteen years.[33] Nehru's premiership embraced republicanism,[34] secularism,[35] social democracy,[36] and a policy of non-alignment during the Cold War.[37] The Indian caste system persisted, despite the constitutional abolition of caste-based discrimination.[38] Meanwhile, the Congress evolved into an increasingly clientelist organisation.[39] While socialist government regulations expanded significantly in what became known as the Licence Raj, capitalism also consolidated.[36] Nehru's leadership failed to satisfy the urban and rural poor, the unemployed, and the Hindu nationalists and fundamentalists.[40] Nehru died in 1964 and was succeeded as prime minister by Lal Bahadur Shastri.[41][42] Shastri's untimely death just two years later, in 1966, led to his succession by Nehru's daughter, Indira Gandhi, India's first and only female prime minister.[43][44] Nehru is often regarded as the architect of modern India.[45][46]
Indira Gandhi and the Emergency
In response to a decline in support for Congress in the 1967 general election, Indira Gandhi embraced an increasingly left-wing populist platform.[47][48] This led to opposition from the party’s right-wing, ultimately causing Congress to split in 1969 into the conservative and anti-socialist Congress (O),[49] and the Gandhi-led socialist Congress (R).[42][50][51] Gandhi's Congress (R) won a landslide victory in the 1971 general election.[52] She garnered an immense cult of personality[53] and centralised power.[54] Though many praised her for her state socialism and protectionism,[55][56] others criticised her Machiavellianism and perceived insincerity regarding her socialist stance.[50][57][58][59]
Rising economic turmoil led to an increase in civil unrest.[60][61][62] Gandhi's increasing control over the judiciary sparked multiple constitutional crises.[63] The Allahabad High Court found Gandhi guilty of electoral malpractice.[64] In the face of massive political opposition and disorder across the country, Gandhi enacted a state of emergency.[39][53][62] The Emergency began in 1975, and saw nationwide censorship,[65][66] mass arrests of dissenters and political opponents,[53][67] the suspension of fundamental rights,[53][62] widespread forced sterilisation,[57][68] and an extreme centralisation of power.[53][69] In 1977, Gandhi called for fresh elections, which resulted in a landslide victory for the Janata Party, a broad anti-Congress coalition. Janata Party leader Morarji Desai subsequently became the country's first non-Congress prime minister.[70][71]
Post-Emergency era
The Desai Premiership ended the state of emergency and amended the constitution to make it more difficult for the government to declare emergencies.[72][73] Desai's economic policies was met with little success.[74] Significant ideological and political divisions eroded the Janata government.[75][76] In 1979, Desai resigned and Charan Singh was appointed prime minister.[77][78] Singh himself resigned just months later. In the 1980 election, Congress resurged, facilitating Indira Gandhi's return to power.[79] Following her assassination in 1984,[80] her son Rajiv Gandhi succeeded her as prime minister,[81] with the Nehru–Gandhi family evolving into a political dynasty.[82]
Rise of coalition politics, Hindu nationalism, and economic liberalisation
Rajiv Gandhi won a landslide victory in the 1984 election.[83] At the age of 40, he became India's youngest prime minister.[84] His tenure saw a shift towards economic deregulation.[85] The Congress was defeated in 1989, and V. P. Singh of the Janata Dal coalition assumed office.[86] His implementation of the Mandal Commission report—expanding reservations for lower caste Hindus—sparked significant social and political unrest.[87] The 1990s also marked the ascent of Hindu nationalism in Indian politics.[88][89][90] Following Singh's ousting through a motion of no confidence, Chandra Shekhar briefly served as prime minister before resigning in 1991.[91] With the 1991 election, the Congress returned to power under P. V. Narasimha Rao, whose government initiated sweeping economic liberalisation amidst a severe balance of payments crisis.[92][93][94] The Congress lost the 1996 election. Atal Bihari Vajpayee of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), closely affiliated with the far-right hindu nationalist paramilitary organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS),[95] briefly became prime minister but his government fell within days.[96] Two successive United Front coalition governments under H. D. Deve Gowda and Inder Kumar Gujral followed, both short-lived due to political instability.[96] Vajpayee returned to power in 1998, and after another brief collapse, led the BJP-organised National Democratic Alliance (NDA) coalition to victory in the 1999 election.[97][98] He became the first non-Congress prime minister to complete a full term.[99] His government conducted successful nuclear weapons tests in 1998, continued economic liberalisation, and improved diplomatic relations with the United States.[100] Dependent on coalition support and led by the moderate Vajpayee,[101] the BJP was unable to advance key ideological goals, which sowed dissent among hardliners within the party.[102]
Democratic backsliding
Numerous media outlets[103][104][2] and academic scholars[105][106] have extensively documented the democratic backsliding seen in India in recent years.
According to V-Dem Institute, laws on sedition, defamation, and counterterrorism are used to silence critics and dissenting voices.[107][108] The Institute characterises India as "one of the worst autocratisers in the last 10 years."[109] Free political speech is limited.[110] Gerrymandering is another challenge to democracy in India.[111][112]
For the year 2024, India was ranked as the 19th most electorally democratic country in Asia, amid a process of democratic backsliding, according to the V-Dem Democracy indices.[113]
See also
References
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