Indian Democracy | The Features and The Challenges | Article

Preface

Democracy was formed in India in 1947 after it absolutely was free from the clutches of British rule. This gave birth to the world's largest democracy. it absolutely was because of the effective leadership of the Indian National Congress that the people of India got the proper to vote and elect their government.

Democratic principles of India

At present, there are seven national parties in India which are as follows - Indian National Congress (NCP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India- Marxist (CPI- M), All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). Apart from these, many regional parties fight for the state assembly elections. Parliament and state legislatures are elected every 5 years in India.

The democratic principles of India

Sovereign

Sovereign means independent - free from the interference or control of any foreign power. the govt. that runs the country is an elected government by the citizens. Indian citizens have the ability to elect their leaders by elections conducted for the Parliament, local bodies and therefore the state legislature.

Socialist

Socialist means social and economic equality for all citizens of the country. Democratic socialism means achieving socialist goals through evolutionary, democratic and non-violent means. The govt. is consistently making efforts to cut back the concentration of wealth and to cut back economic inequality.

Secularism

It means the proper and freedom to decide on religion. In India, anyone has the proper to practice any religion or reject all of them. the govt. of India respects all religions and has no official state religion. The democracy of India doesn't insult or promote any religion.

Democratic

This means that the country's government has been democratically elected by its citizens. The people of the country have the proper right to elect their government in the slightest degree levels (union, state and local). People's adult suffrage is thought as 'one man one vote'. the proper to vote is given on the premise of colour, caste, creed, religion, sex or education with none discrimination. Not only political but also the people of India enjoy social and economic democracy.

The republic

The head of the state isn't a heredity king or queen but an elected person. The formal head of state, i.e., the President of India, is elected by the electoral process (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) for a term of 5 years while executive powers vest within the Prime Minister.

Challenges faced by Indian democracy

The constitution promises a democratic state and provides every kind of rights to the people of India. There are many factors which act to influence Indian democracy and became a challenge for it. A number of the subsequent factors are discussed below.

Illiteracy

People's illiteracy is one among the largest challenges that have always been faced since the start of Indian democracy. Education enables people to exercise their right to vote wisely.

Poverty

People from poor and backward classes are usually always molested by political parties. Political parties often offer bribes and other forms of inducements to induce votes from them.

Apart from these, there are many other factors like casteism, sexism, communalism, religious fundamentalism, political violence and corruption which became a challenge for democracy in India.

The conclusion

India's democracy is widely appreciated worldwide. The right to vote is given to every citizen of the country without any discrimination on the basis of their caste, colour, creed, religion, sex or education. The country's vast cultural, religious and linguistic diversity is a major challenge for democracy. With this, this difference between people has become a cause for serious concern in today's time. We need to stop these divisive tendencies to ensure the smooth functioning of democracy in India.

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