Dr. R K Chadha
In a democracy all people are equal because the government is of the people, by the people and for the people. Contrary to these tenets, we inherited a flawed democracy beginning with the Congress rule lead by a leader who did not had the mandate to become the first Prime Minister of Bharat. In 1946, elections were held for a new President of the Indian National Congress and whoever became the President would eventually take over as the first Prime Minister after independence.
Jawaharlal Nehru did not receive a single nomination, while 12 of the 15 Provincial Congress Committees (PCC) voted in favour of Sardar Patel. Yet, Gandhi, Bhishma Pitamah of our polity, intervened and persuaded Sardar Patel to withdraw in Nehru’s favour. Thus, the die was cast for a flawed democracy in Bharat, one in which some people became more equal than others. The precedent endured, paving the way for a future single-family rule in the country, both at the national and state levels.
Indian National Congress (Gandhi family), Samajwadi (Akhlesh Yadav family), RJD (Laloo Yadav family), PDP (Mufti family), NC (Abdullah family), DMK (Stalin family), YSR (Reddy family), BJD (Patnaik family), TMC (Mamata family), UBT (Uddhav family), NCP (Pawar family), JMM (Soren family), BSP (Mayawati family), BRS (KCR family), TDP (Naidu family), JDS (Gowda family), Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal family), AIMIM (Owasi family), INLD (Chautala family), LJP (Paswan family), AAP (Sunita Kejriwal, in the pipeline), Vadra family, waiting in the wings to take over Congress, and so on. These are a few outcomes of the Gandhi-Nehru legacy.
Our flawed democracy had no parallel anywhere in the world. Nehru, “a chip off the old block,” never fully freed himself from the mental slavery of colonial rule or from his personal affinity for the former colonial rulers and their families. This mindset fostered a sense of inferiority among common people in the country, diminishing the pride in our own ancient and rich cultural identity. In the initial decades after Independence, the Congress exploited the legacy of the freedom struggle to manipulate public sentiment and consolidated power within one family. Proponents claim the country stayed united due to the Congress party’s democratic practices. In reality, this was a euphemism for surrendering to a specific minority and appeasing them to stay in power, leaving our democracy a success story only on paper.
A family-controlled party may be lawful, but when leadership passes down like inherited property, competence and merit are the first casualties. This raises a legitimate question of democratic accountability. The nation was held hostage by a handful of greying young satraps of the Congress and other regional parties, the leaders who weakened democracy from within, only to cry today that democracy is in danger.
Most of us who have lived through the Emergency period of Indira Gandhi’s Congress saw democracy being hijacked and atrocities inflicted on political opponents by the Gandhi family’s rule by putting them behind bars for months without a fair trial. Remember the Turkman Gate incident and forceful family planning operations performed on unsuspecting and innocent young males by Gandhi scion Sanjay. The country paid a heavy ransom for that betrayal of freedom. Yet, tragically, the people later returned power to the same rulers, effectively crowning the hijackers as kings once again in 1980.
The first hope of real democracy was felt when the son of a tea seller became the Prime Minister in 2014. The country woke up after a long comatose period as the mask of false democracy slipped and crumbled. Prime Minister Narendra Modi provided a decade of stable government of the people, by the people, and for the people as the democracy on the ground started unfolding. Today, our Honourable President comes from the Scheduled caste community, and we still have a substantial conglomerate of opposition parties that are functional, though incompetent. The Prime Minister and the ruling party slog very hard to win an election while working at a hectic pace towards the goal of a Viksit Bharat by 2047.
We have a strong anti-government media criticising day and night but still functioning freely. The Supreme Court opens its doors and hears pleas of the opposition parties even during midnight sessions lasting till early morning; the 2018 case of the Congress-JD(S) alliance to form the government in Karnataka is an example. Elections are held in a free and fair atmosphere. Gone are the days of ink being thrown in paper ballot boxes or frequent booth capturing, though EVMs are blamed whenever and wherever the opposition loses. All pillars of democracy are intact and functioning despite all pressure tactics of the opposition parties by hurling choicest abuses on the highest offices of the Prime Minister, Chief Election Commissioner, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.
After failing to unseat the democratically elected Modi government in three successive elections, the INDI alliance is now promoting the narrative that democracy has died under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rahul Gandhi and Co., increasingly restless, appear to be turning towards street agitations under the slogan of “Vote Chori,” demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Their tactics have grown more provocative. They have even stormed the premises of the Supreme Court and demanded the resignation of Hon’ble Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, addressing him as “Dear Surya” in a since-deleted tweet, apparently fearing contempt proceedings.
The Gandhi scion seems to have realised that his grip on the party is weakening. His repeated electoral failures, onstage cheap gimmicks, and personal attacks on prominent figures, including his bête noire, Prime Minister Modi, have not restored his political standing. He also faces a quiet challenge from within the family, with Priyanka Gandhi and Robert Vadra seen by many as waiting in the wings.
In his desperation to remain relevant, he has now embraced a small but high-visibility “cockroach” protest movement. Its leaders include a Boston-returned Indian American activist, along with allies from the film fraternity, left-liberal circles, the “Dafli gangs” of JNU, professional agitators, and others. These protesters now move freely through the streets of Delhi and other metropolitan cities, apparently unchecked. This has given them a false sense of invincibility. They believe they represent the Gen Z of the country, particularly after Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation during the NEET paper-leak protests earlier this year. These cockroaches are looking for new issues to remain relevant as they are presently unemployed, politically.
The 2029 parliamentary election is still two and a half years away. In my view, the government may have deliberately allowed the cockroach protests at Jantar Mantar as bait to expose their hidden agenda and expose their allies, instead of making them heroes. They have been successful in their attempt. Except for a handful of supporters and YouTubers, attendance at the protest sites appears to be dwindling. The government is dealing with the protesters firmly, much as one deals with cockroaches. Public enthusiasm for the agitation remains limited to tweets on social platform, rather than on the ground. Stories of “toolkits” allegedly inimical to the nation’s progress are circulating, and many people are questioning the source of its funding. Irritation, rather than sympathy, is beginning to take over the public sentiment in the streets. The cockroach protests resemble a storm in a teacup, one likely to blow over soon, taking with it leaders such as Dipke, Ranka, Sourav Das, and Bora. The same political fate that befell Hardik Patel and Kanhaiya Kumar may await them.
In extreme frustration, Rahul Gandhi is promoting Neha Bora, AISA’s Left-leaning national president as the new ally of the Congress. She recently spilled the beans by openly admitting that they are all inspired by Bangladesh protests to dislodge the democratically elected government through street protests. Doubling on this, the remarks of Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan have let the cat out of the bag by declaring the intentions of the combined anti-Modi forces to turn Bharat into Bangladesh and Nepal and force regime change.
In my opinion, all these protests are working in favour of the government as the nationalist forces are now countering cockroaches in the streets. Except for the party cadre, the opposition parties are losing people’s support, and cockroaches are fighting a battle for their survival, which may be their last before they are decimated. Taking advantage of the positive sentiment in its favour, the Modi government may pass Women’s Quota and Delimitation Bills in the special Parliament session. While the road to the 2029 Parliament elections for the BJP looks clear, two years is a long period in politics. Unless the BJP self-destructs with some foolish actions, there is no challenge from the opposition in the near future.
Meanwhile, our democracy is neither dead nor beyond challenge. It is a continuing experiment, one that demands restraint from those in power, responsibility from those in opposition, and vigilance from citizens.
