Keyword : Democracy

What Chennai voter wants: above all, the odd-even scheme!

When people of Chennai go out to vote for the next state government on May 16, what will be the issues top most in their minds? Curiously, they will be thinking less about jobs, ‘good governa

How consumer friendly our states are

Democracy is defined as “government of the people, by the people and for the people”. Our well established system of elections satisfies to a great extent the definition “of and b

A lesson for Indian politicians from an unusual kids` parliament

Ili, 14, is out on the street busy canvassing for her 10-year old friend Naila Ayaz, who is a candidate for a unique children’s parliament. Just like seasoned politicians, they make promises

Carnivalesque columnist

Shiv Visvanathan rightly prefers to be introduced as a social science nomad. He is an itinerant thinker, wandering across boundaries of academic disciplines and professions. An anthology of

Case for synchronising election cycles

Since public memory is woefully short, it may not be common knowledge that general elections for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies were held simultaneously initially – in 1951, 1957, 1962 an

Possibilities and challenges of simultaneous elections

The debate over holding simultaneous elections in the country, i.e. conducting both general and state elections at the same time, has of lately taken flight. Last year, the Standing Committee on Pe

Simultaneous polls will reduce expenditure

Prime minister Narendra Modi made the suggestion for holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly elections at the all-party meeting ahead of the parliament session. The Standing Comm

Civvies won’t march, fatigues won’t scribe

Civil-military relations is not a happy phrase because it suggests a basic dichotomy and opposition between the civilian and the military perspectives. Differences in viewpoints give rise to typica

ADR to launch a campaign for clean politics

The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) which has been working towards increasing transparency and accountability in political and electoral system is taking forward its advocacy to another le

192 newly elected MLAs have criminal backgrounds

A staggering 192 newly elected MLAs in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa have declared criminal cases against themselves. Also, 540 of the new MLAs are crorepatis.

The secret of Modi’s success

Here is a proposition: Narendra Modi is the top  thinker, the top intellectual of our times. Is that an exaggerated claim? Not altogether. Here’s why. After Brexit and aft

The magic of Moditva

The well-turned-out officials had reached the sachivalaya in Gandhinagar on time, believing it would be another routine meeting with the chief minister. As soon as they had settled in, the

VP candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi on fear and democracy

Former West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi, who is Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson, doesn’t hesitate to call a spade a spade. He once said that fear rules India and at another time poi

What India needs to do to finally become a superpower

For the past 25 years, India has been rising in stature. It is continually called an upcoming superpower but has been unable to reach the promised status. India’s importance in the world is m

Ascent and dissent

Rahul Gandhi has become the president of India’s grand old party. Nobody else wanted to, since none contested. By any parameter, it is not a welcome move in a democracy. Regardless of your vi

Majoritarianism rules!

Just the facts first. In the Gujarat assembly elections, the BJP did not field a single Muslim candidate. No one expected it to; and its leaders make no bones about ignoring the nine percent Muslim

25 Years of Panchayati Raj: Mapping the road ahead

The Panchayati Raj institution (PRI) is celebrating the 25th anniversary of its inception this year. The institution was formalized through the 73rd amendment to the constitution in 1992 with the p

A vote against democracy?

Democracy, in its broad sense, tolerates dissent, allows freedom of expression and hence diversity of views by protecting minority views and human rights. The functioning of any democracy is charac

Empowering citizens is better than entitlements

Is nature more than just good and evil? Is civilisation bad? Does nature perpetuate inequality? Does civilisation perpetuate inequality? These questions have been debated by philosophers since th

The why not game

A few years ago, we could have suggested, why not do away with `1,000 notes. We could have also suggested that the planning commission is anyway founded on an executive fiat and can be done away wi

Why not allow people to propose laws?

Democracy is people’s own rule, but the billion-plus people of India cannot gather in one place to frame laws. So we elect representatives who, theoretically speaking, draft laws on our behal

Indian republic @70: Constitutional vision vs. social reality

This 26th of January earmarks the 70th anniversary of the Indian republic. In the 69 years of journey, India has made considerable progress in democratising the society at large. The Constitution o

Kashmir conundrum and Pakistan’s democracy deficit

The Kashmir conundrum was never below the radar, but the Pulwama attack has once again put terrorism and foreign-aided separatism on top of the national agenda. The ghastly killing of the CRPF pers

The role celebrities play in politics

In a 1992 Lok Sabha by-poll, voters of New Delhi – the power hub of the capital – were faced with an enviable choice: Rajesh Khanna of the Congress versus rising-star Shatrughan Sinha o

“The key issue in this election is: Save Democracy, Save the Constitution”

Former Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, an engineer by training, is a rare politician: down-to-earth and with a clean image. In the midst of the hectic electioneering, Chavan spoke wit

The Elephant dances

The 2019 parliamentary election in India is a humungous affair: about 890 million voters, nearly thrice the population of the United States, many months of planning, over a month of actual voting a

A place of local democracy in pandemic governance: The case of Mumbai

Democracy in India is now taken for a fact, with an unstated assumption that all our institutions are democratic and hence often our successes and more often failures are attributed to ‘democ

Election manifestos and voters` Right to Know

Recognising the importance of election manifestos, the supreme court directed the election commission (EC) of India to frame guidelines directly governing the contents of the election manifestos in

Why we need a new option in EVM: ‘Least Undeserving Candidate’

According to the “lesser of two evils” principle, whenever we have to choose among two evils, we should go for the lesser one. Flawed election systems provide voters such a limited choi

Vote in the time of Covid: EC hosts global webinar

On completion of one year of the chairmanship of the Association of World Election Bodies (A-WEB), the Election Commission (EC) of India on Monday hosted an international webinar on the the

How about flagging candidates with criminal past on ballot?

The concept of the ‘Rule of Law’ is the basic structure of our constitution. It becomes imperative to observe the rule of law in order to run the country according to the constitutional

Effective Covid-19 response is success of whole nation: PM

India’s effective handling of the Covid-19 pandemic is not the success of an individual or a party but is the success of the nation and should be celebrated as such, prime minister Narendra M

Vote for Good Governance, vote for those who care for your life and livelihood

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) compiles an annual  ranking of countries based on an index comprising of health, education, and income. For the year 2020, for which data has be

Cast your vote, not vote for caste

Once the schedule for the next assembly elections has been announced, there is a flurry of activity around building caste coalitions. This is more intense in the most populous state,  Uttar Pr

How to make elections more meaningful

The Power of the Ballot: Travail and Triumph in the Elections

India@75: A timely study of the state of the nation

India after 1947: Reflections & Recollections By Rajmohan Gandhi Aleph, 118 pages, Rs 399 Rajmohan Gandhi was about 11 when India won inde

India celebrates National Voters’ Day

The 13th National Voters’ Day was celebrated across the country Wednesday with president Droupadi Murmu gracing the national event held here. Kiren Rijiju, union minister for law & justic

MPs bid adieu to historic parliament building, step into new building

A function was organised in the Central Hall of Parliament on Tuesday to commemorate the rich legacy of the Parliament of India as the Members came together to bid adieu to the historical building

US presidential elections: A clash of the titans

The issues of the order of immigration, healthcare, abortion rights or otherwise along with the American economy and the American contributions to the twin wars have impacted the general narrative

75 visitors from abroad watch world’s largest elections unfold

As a beacon of electoral integrity and transparency, the Election Commission of India (ECI) exemplifies its commitment to conduct general elections of the highest standards, offering a golden bridg

Why you should vote

What are the direct tangible benefits that you want from the government coming in power? The manifestos of various parties set a host of agendas which many times falls back in materialising the int

Visionary Talk: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now


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