Ananda Coomaraswamy wrote that democracy finally descends into chaos, where the defeated will always have a grudge against the victors. The amount of hatred that the Republicans and Democrats have for each other in the USA is even preventing marriages across the groups, if reports need believing. The same hate is now evident in the multi-party system of India, where things are even more chaotic. Both for the parties and the people following the parties, affiliation with the party seems to matter more than the nation itself. A new party comes into power and immediately undoes whatever the previous party has done, good or bad. There is prompt renaming of many schemes and benefits.
Even something so simple as praising a past PM on his birth anniversary becomes a slugfest between political parties as one accuses the others of inadequately honouring him. Great Indians who worried for their country are now in the brackets of narrow political identities. The most disturbing thing for an ordinary citizen is the role of the governor. There are all the reasons to disband it completely now that it has become a political post. In most states, allegations and counter-allegations abound that the governor is acting as the centre’s agent. The governor is mostly on an absolutely independent but ineffective path, unconnected to the ruling party.
The mess is of gargantuan proportions, and finally, the desperation for votes and the greed for power seem to be driving the country’s democracy rather than a love for the country. However, Greek philosophers two thousand years ago made the same criticism of democracy. Is there a way out? Perhaps the first would be to ensure some qualifications to become leaders, like some basic education and a lack of criminal records. Any civilization looks at qualifications and authority to allow any person to do his duty. It is sad that in a democracy, there are requirements to qualify for the lowest of the posts, but none for ruling the people, except the power to gain votes by any means possible. The leaders of today are only dividing the people in every conceivable manner, with rarely a holistic vision encompassing the country. Unfortunately, the people are following suit.
Letter published on 2nd July, 2023 in THI
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