Even before India was to be free in 1947, Winston Churchill had predicted that post independence India would disintegrate and fall back into the Middle Ages. Even the Chief Architect of the Indian Constitution, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar had expressed the possibility of India losing her independence for the second time and turning to dictatorship. Fortunately, even after 68 years of India turning republic on 26 January 1950, she could safeguard her territorial sovereignty and democracy as well. Of course, India must have faced certain obstacles during last seven decades including the Black Emergency (1975-’77) of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and wars with Pakistan and China apart from the terrorist threats and attacks, but it could successfully resist the dangers of disintegration, continued to progress and prosper.
On 25 November 1949 while making his final speech in the Constituent Assembly of India, Dr. Ambedkar, the first Law Minister of India, expressed fear of India losing her independence by the infidelity and treachery of some of her own people. He recollected the history and told the Assembly: “In the invasion of Sindh by Mahommed-Bin-Kasim, the military commanders of King Dahar accepted bribes from the agents of Mahommed-Bin-Kasim and refused to fight on the side of their King. It was Jaichand who invited Mahommed Ghori to invade India and fight against Prithvi Raj and promised him the help of himself and the Solanki Kings. When Shivaji was fighting for the liberation of Hindus, the other Maratha noblemen and the Rajput Kings were fighting the battle on the side of Mughal Emperors. When the British were trying to destroy the Sikh Rulers, Gulab Singh, their principal commander (who was to be the Maharaja of J & K) sat silent and did not help to save the Sikh Kingdom. In 1857, when a large part of India had declared a war of independence against the British, the Sikhs stood and watched the event as silent spectators.”
“Will history repeat itself? It is this thought which fills me with anxiety. This anxiety is deepened by the realization of the fact that in addition to our old enemies in the form of castes and creeds, we are going to have many political parties with diverse and opposing political creeds. Will Indians place the country above their creed or will they place creed above country? I do not know. But this much is certain that if the parties place creed above country, our independence will be put in jeopardy a second time and probably be lost forever. This eventuality we must all resolutely guard against. We must be determined to defend our independence with the last drop of our blood.”
In ancient times, India had Janapadas or Mahajanpadas like in Maurya period. The Chairman of the Constitution Drafting Committee says: “It is not that India did not know what is Democracy. There was a time when India was studded with republics, and even where there were monarchies, they were either elected or limited. They were never absolute. It is not that India did not know Parliaments or parliamentary procedure.”
After Centuries India became democratic republic and it is not only the duty of the political leadership, but every citizen must see to it that democracy is not only saved but has to be strengthened. There are three warnings one has to be cautious to protect democracy in India.
- We must do is to hold fast to constitutional methods of achieving our social and economic objectives. It means we must abandon the bloody methods of revolution. It means that we must abandon the method of civil disobedience, non-cooperation and satyagraha. When there was no way left for constitutional methods for achieving economic and social objectives, there was a great deal of justification for unconstitutional methods.
- The second thing we must do is to observe the caution which John Stuart Mill has given to all who are interested in the maintenance of democracy, namely, not “to lay their liberties at the feet of even a great man, or to trust him with power which enable him to subvert their institutions”. For in India, Bhakti or what may be called the path of devotion or hero-worship, plays a part in its politics. Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, Bhakti or hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship.
- The third thing we must do is not to be content with mere political democracy. We must make our political democracy a social democracy as well. Political democracy cannot last unless there lies at the base of it social democracy.
On 24 July 2017, while giving the farewell speech as the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, put stress on non-violence and tolerance. He said: “The soul of India resides in pluralism and tolerance. India is not just a geographical entity. It carries a history of ideas, philosophy, intellect, industrial genius, craft, innovation and experience. Plurality of our society has come about through assimilation of ideas over centuries. The multiplicity in culture, faith and language is what makes India special. We derive our strength from tolerance. It has been part of our collective consciousness for centuries. There are divergent strands in public discourse. We may argue, we may agree or we may not agree. But we cannot deny the essential prevalence of multiplicity of opinion. Otherwise, a fundamental character of our thought process will wither away.”
Of course, one should be under no illusion that everything in India is in order. The picture is not gloomy either. But one cannot ignore the warning bell by a retired civil servant, Ranchhor Prasad, is quoted in “Indian Republic: Issues and Perspectives” by M.G. Chitkara and Bansi Ram Sarma (1997): “Various distortions that have been taken place in the past two decades have however added an altogether new dimension to the whole problem and created a situation which now threatens the very existence of the Indian Union and its democratic polity.” Prasad talks about “a close nexus between contractors, leaders of Mafias and criminal gangs and many persons with criminal antecedents, including prominent politicians.” Now the scenario has changed to such an extent that the Mafias and criminals are entering the legislatures and the Parliament. Some of them even become the Cabinet rank holders and call the shots. This is the tragedy of Indian democracy. And hardly any political party is exception. This is not the democratic Indian republic the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru, Sardar Patel, Jayprakash Narayan, Dr. Rammanohar Lohia or Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya had visualized.
Next Column: Humour of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel
(The writer is a Socio-political Historian. E-mail : [email protected] )
