Indian democracy remains a model
Dear Sir,
While I do agree with the details of the Gulf Times Viewpoint, “The India democracy experience, no model for a modern world” (May 8), and similar comments elsewhere based on the recent anomalies in the country’s administrative and political domains, I still believe that India’s democracy, with all its weaknesses, is still an example to many others.
A large country with a population of 1.2bn with many socio-economic complexities resulting from ethnic diversities, economic imbalances, social disparities and cultural multiplicity, India has been able to avoid anarchism to a large extent with certain built-in structural safeguards. If such a nation with such inherent conundrums has been able to prevent anarchism for seven decades since independence, it speaks for the efficacy of India’s democracy.
At the same time, sharing your views on the recent cases of corruption and other irregularities, I would rather attribute them more to interference of corporate giants in the country’s politics. Almost all political parties rely on industrialists for financial support. The business houses’ sole motive is to increase profit and they use their political connections for that. The political parties, in return for the financial rewards, work with and for the industrialists.
The world has changed a lot and there is no point in comparing modern times with earlier days when values and ideals were more important in politics. Patriotism and moral principles have now been hijacked by financial interests; money supersedes moral principles.
Also, corruption has become a global phenomenon now. No nation is free from this cancerous virus, especially where a coalition government is in power.
When Anna Hazare initiated a nation-wide movement against corruption, his movement received big support initially and national political parties came under pressure to respond to its demands. Expectations were high that the movement would have the potential to form a pressure group against political corruption. However, due to the inherent weaknesses of that movement, including corruption charges against some of its own core team members, personal interests of its leaders and the invisible control of a national political party, it lost its steam and petered out.
But India still has a lot of potential to become a political and economic power and in spite of all its deficiencies, is progressing steadily to prove its merit for which democracy is and will remain the driving force.
K K Nazimudeen
PO Box 441
Doha
