That exemplary 'experiment'

As India celebrates Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, or 75 years of its independence, there is yet another milestone that marks the country's progress — completion of 70 years of its first general elections. The first general elections, completed in 1952, went on to shape and strengthen the Indian democratic functioning.

It was exactly 70 years ago that India set out on the path of democracy. It was a daunting task. A vastly illiterate and underdeveloped country setting out on the path of democracy was indeed an audacious decision. But the leaders of the freedom struggle felt that for a country with such profound diversity and pluralism, democracy was the only way forward.

This decision to embrace democracy was not taken kindly in the West. A Western newspaper editorial stated that India "seems always to be on trial — of no other country is it so insistently asked: Will it make it?" Could India survive? Could democracy survive in India? These had been dominant questions for a long time in the Western media.

In India, democracy has not only survived, but has taken deep roots. Indian Parliament stands at the helm of three-tier structure, with legislative assemblies at the state level and local bodies at the district, block and village levels. Thus, democracy in India has come to permeate to the grassroots level.

True test of democracy, it is said, is not how governments are chosen, but how governments are changed. Change of governments — both at the Centre and in the states — has thus far been peaceful in the country.

In 1967, when there were simultaneous Parliament and state assembly elections, the people, across the heartland states, voted out the incumbent Congress governments. The Congress managed to remain in power only at the Centre, with a wafer-thin majority.

These were landmark elections because they paved the way for an experiment around coalitions, wherein the Samyukth Vidhayak Dal (SVD) governments were formed in several states.

In 1977, after the bitter episode of Emergency, the people peacefully voted out the Congress government at the Centre. The Congress lost power at the Centre for the first time since the dawn of Independence. This marked the coming of age and maturity of Indian democracy.

In 1989, there was an experiment with the coalition government. The National Front government of Prime Minister VP Singh was formed with the coming together of the extreme poles of Indian politics — the BJP and the Left Front. That was, however, short-lived.

In 1991, India witnessed the spectacle of a single-party government, led by PV Narasimha Rao, coming to power and successfully completing its term in office till 1996.

Then, the coalition era formally started in 1996 when three coalition governments were formed in a row. The three governments were of the United Front from 1996-1998, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) from 1998-2004 and the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) from 2004-2014.

Breaking the jinx of political instability of three decades — after the general elections in 1984 when a single-party government was last formed — Narendra Modi-led BJP government ushered in a single-party rule, ending the coalition era. His emphatic victory in 2019 again, only strengthened the trend.

As the world's largest democracy, India has a full adult franchise. What is more important is that India gave voting rights to women at the dawn of her Independence itself, which was later followed by reservations at the local bodies.

This is in sharp contrast to the West, especially the United States — the world's oldest democracy — where women had to fight for over a century for their voting rights.

Though the US gained independence on July 4, 1776, the American women got voting rights only after the passage of the 19th Amendment in the US Congress on June 4, 1919, and ratification on August 18, 1920.

This was indeed the start of a great experiment with democracy. It was seen as the only way for an ancient, complex and vast country to be transformed into a modern nation.

Democracy in India seemed to strengthen the caste hold on the masses. Similarly, owing to earlier suppression of languages and culture, democracy in India seemed to pave the way for assertion of regional pride. Eventually, it is democracy alone that will ultimately restore harmony and balance in society.

Unlike in the West, where economic and social changes came step-by-step, in India, several revolutions like the political, economic, technological, social and cultural, all happened simultaneously, but peacefully.

Democratic functioning has gained deep roots in the country. There is a phenomenon of social, economic and political engineering in New India. There is a constant change of ideas, attitudes, habits and customs. Transformational changes are taking place, by consent, and within the framework of democratic functioning.

Three streams of thought have shaped Indian democracy. The first, of course, was the stream of liberalism and parliamentary democracy, emerging from the British system of parliamentary institutions, free elections, political parties and fundamental rights and freedoms. The second stream was the socialist thought, with its emphasis on social democracy and economic planning and development. The third stream emanated from Mahatma Gandhi and his philosophy of non-violent revolution.

Success of democracy in India debunks all political pundits. They often tend to see democracy as a two-party system that could be run only by the educated. That is why the West always believed that the underdeveloped nations of Asia and Africa were not ready for democracy.

During the freedom struggle, independence was the primary goal, but freedom was only the starting point for the national political, economic, social and cultural development. And it was through democratic functioning that India shaped up as a modern nation.

The Election Commission of India works round the clock, throughout the year, for supervision of elections for Panchayats, District Boards, State Assemblies, Legislative Councils, Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, President, Vice-President. Apart from this, the key role in enumeration of voters, verification of voters' list and delimitation of constituencies, are also carried out by the EC.

Elections are a costly affair in a democratic country like India. The development of the country can be focussed and concentrated with one election at a time. The ideal of democracy is to offer the fruits of development to all the citizens of the country. The delivery system of democratic services for a huge population was revolutionised with Jan Dhan Yojana. The financial inclusion programme of the Government of India, followed by Direct Beneficiary Transfer pertaining to social security schemes, has led to elimination of corruption. Later, Digital India improvised transparency and ensured accessible financial services to all.

Hence, the nation can witness changes and reforms across various sectors, which will enhance the quality service delivery for its citizens. For this to happen, the leadership matters.

Views expressed are personal