This might sound like a cliche but it is indeed a substantive subject for discussion. Let us first take on the so called paragon of modern democracy, The United States of America. Can you imagine a communist party being allowed to contest elections in the US? In India, the communists are not only permitted to contest elections but have also ruled some state governments in the last few decades. Heavens did not fall! On the flip side there is a national party, Bharatiya Janata Party, that thrives on religious politics and yet it did not destroy Indian democracy. It is virtually inconceivable for any western democracy to live with robust regional parties who actually govern different states, like in India, over an extended period of time. These are very major achievements for any democracy in the world. Notwithstanding the scams and the scandals, the civil institutions in India have worked reasonably well.
India is one of the very few democracies in the world that adopted a written constitution on November 26, 1949 that came into effect on January 26, 1950 and has honored it through thick and thin. Even during the brief but unfortunate time of Indira Gandhi’s emergency, the constitution of India sustained. Very few countries can boast of such maturity in its public discourse. India has an independent judiciary and a very independent fourth estate i.e. print and electronics media. To top it all the advent of internet and the services like “facebook” and “twitter” have brought the world of information to your door step. Unlike China and few other totalitarian societies, India does not impose any restrictions on social networks or web-sites. The icing on the cake is the much celebrated RTI (Right to Information Act) of 2005, a landmark legislation that would transform India in the decades to come.
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