Caste, Communalism, and the Crisis of Indian Democracy: Why Justice Katju Says It's Time to Rethink
Justice Markandey Katju challenges India's blind faith in democracy, arguing that real progress lies not in electoral rituals but in raising living standards. Casteism, communalism, and poverty still dominate, making democracy a farce, not a solution.
Democracy is not a holy cow
By Justice Markandey Katju
The test of every political activity and political system is one, and only one: does it raise the standard of living of the people? Does it give them better lives?
Some people have a fetish for democracy and regard it as a holy cow. But democracy can only be a means to an end; it is not the end itself. The end must be raising the standard of living of the people and giving them better lives.
In India, we have had democracy since 1950 when our Constitution was promulgated, and regular elections, but how has it benefited us? We still have massive poverty, massive unemployment, appalling levels of child malnutrition ( every second child in India is malnourished, according to Global Hunger Index ), almost total lack of proper healthcare and good education for the masses, etc.
In fact our democracy is largely based on caste and communal vote banks, and is thus a farce. Our political leaders, who have no genuine love for the people but only seek power and pelf, skilfully manipulate it by polarising society by spreading caste and communal hatred, to get votes.
China, which has about the same population as India (140 crores), does not have democracy but it has developed tremendously, and has lifted a large part of its population out of poverty. It has annual 19 trillion dollar GDP, while we have about 3.5 trillion dollars GDP ( GDP of USA is about 27.7 trillion dollars, which means China is rapidly catching up with USA ).
These days the main focus of attention in India is on having a correct voters list in the forthcoming Bihar state assembly elections, and it is claimed that democracy will be jeopardised without a correct voters list.
But, as I have mentioned in my article, even if there is a correct voters list, most people in Bihar will still vote on caste and communal lines.
Casteism and communalism are feudal forces which must be destroyed if India is to progress, but our democracy further entrenches them, because it largely runs on their basis. How then can India progress?
It is time the Indian people wake up to realities, and stop glorifying democracy, and treating it as a holy cow.
(Justice Markandey Katju is a former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, and former Chairman of the Press Council of India. The views expressed are his own.)
