Democracy

We have all been through the excruciatingly monotonous process of understanding this word 'Democracy', as part of our social sciences in high school. But today as a citizen, in the worlds largest democracy, what does it really signify for each of us?? How do we play our role?? How can we make our voices heard?? Where does accountability checks (for our leaders) come into picture and how can it be successfully implemented without fear of anarchy creeping in?? What can be done to stop the rampant corruption and the wastage of precious tax rupees along with it?? These questions hold the key to a successful and 'practical' democratic setup. This is exactly what i intend to discuss in this post.

Recent events have all been about how the people triumphed over the corrupt govt. Hurray!! We got what we wanted. But i think there have been good and bad implications. Anna Hazare standing up for the common man and pushing the lokpal bill into being 'actually' considered by the current govt., was a great step. It showed that govt.s are accountable to the common man. So far so good. Then came the whole Ramdev Baba fiasco. Where a yoga teacher, with a great fan following decided that he was the voice of a billion people (with out actually verifying it) and copied the anna hazare story. That's wen things started going downhill. I think that is where we lost as responsible citizens. We as individuals have a responsibility deciding what causes we support. Talking about 'creating your own army' and fighting the govt.s corruption and inactivity; is like creating a non-democratic, violent and anarchist setup for a democratic cause. Probably the biggest irony of our times.

Then comes the issue of lathi charge by the delhi police after such silly, immature remarks made on television. Again intention right, but end result terribly wrong. The police cannot hit and drag women, children and even men, who are protesting non violently. yes the whole protest was veering towards a dangerously slippery slope; But the govt. and police are still accountable in the manner in which the whole gathering was disrupted. A prior warning, by the police, to evacuate, should have done the trick. Somehow the idea of the police, serving and protecting the weak, always slips away.

I think that we NEED to hold the govt. accountable; we NEED to have stringent laws against corruption and money laundering; we NEED to make our concerns heard and see it through. The only debatable point here being 'HOW' we plan to do the above. And that is the key, to a smooth and efficient governance. We have the right constitutionally, to protest, to voice our concerns and to make some noise. But we DO NOT have the right to disrupt governance and disobey democratically correct and essential processes. We cannot raise armies of our own accord or march out one day, and say, that you will pass a new law on your own by holding the govt. at ransom. Such an act only defeats the true purpose behind it. I'm sure every other terrorist organization, started for a good cause; and ended being the most anti-humanitarian setup. It's a fine line.

This situation is like a double edged sword - inaction is not recommended, so also violence. We need to come at an effective solution where accountability and public concerns can form the basis for new laws and methods of governance. We have taken a start. But now we need to responsibly act and move the idea of 'govt. for the people, and by the people' further. We need to develop channels were discussions between citizens, govt., and the learned happen, and affect and change the course of our democracy for good.