by Seema Khan
‘Is India still the greatest democracy?’ is the question foreign media and various think tanks have been raising for the last few years. The international rating agencies like Freedom House, Freddo house, Swedish agency V Dem, etc. have been downgrading India in the list of international ranking of democracies.
Foreign journalists and media have also discussed this question soon after the BJP came to power in 2014. This chorus grew after the CAA protests in 2020, and the horrible attacks on the students in Jawahar Lal University and Jamia Millia University – both by police and the right wing Hindutva elements.
A recent report published in the United States by NGO Freddo House has downgraded India's ranking from democracy to partially free. This report clearly stated that India is now partly free under the Modi government, thus putting a seal on the doubts expressed by the people of the country.
The Freedom House is the oldest American organization funded by the United States Government which supports and advocates democracy worldwide. In its In its Freedom in the World 2021, an annual study of political rights and civil liberties worldwide, India was rated Partly Free. Although the Indian government, through its External affairs ministry, has rebuffed this claim, and it said that India has strong democratic institutions functioning very well. The Freedom House report further reinforces the belief that India can no longer be called a free country but only partly free.
After studying various things like civil liberty and political freedom in the country, grading is done out of 100. In civil rights, India has got only 33 out of 60, and in political space, India has got 34 out of 40. Total 67 out of 100.
“India’s status declined from Free to Partly Free due to a multiyear pattern in which the Hindu nationalist government and its allies have presided over rising violence and discriminatory policies affecting the Muslim population and pursued a crackdown on expressions of dissent by the media, academics, civil society groups, and protesters.” the report cited as being the reason for Status Change.
In March, a Swedish independent research institute in the University of Gothenburg published data on worldwide democracy. In this report, there was some observation that India is on the verge of losing its status as a democracy. The report observed that India is no longer an electoral democracy and declared it an “electoral autocracy”. In its analysis on democracy, V Dem Institute has moved India from top 50% to 97th position among 180 countries.
It is time for the think tanks, intellectuals, journalists, and political leaders to pay some attention to this issue before it is too late. We realize that we have stepped into an authoritarian regime, and going back may become difficult. There is strong need to look at the events and issues that lead to a question mark on Indian democracy, which has become a topic for worldwide discussion.
The urge for an authoritarian government in the country has been growing for the last few years. Voices have been coming for a strong leader and strong leadership, and to prove this point, Dr. Manmohan Singh was always projected as a weak leader.
Ever since Modi became the Prime Minister of India, BJP leaders have vouched for Modi to remain in power for as long as possible. Yogi Adyatha Nath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, said that Modi would remain in power for 25 years. Another BJP leader and Hindutva supporter Sakshi Maharaj declared that there is no longer any need for elections.
The reaction of the general public in India was shocking when Prime Minister announced demonetization, but few protested or raised a voice. It was as if the whole country has surrendered.
But when demonetization was announced in Venezuela In November 2016, the government had to take it back as people took to the streets to protest.
When Article 370 was removed from the Indian Constitution, reducing Jammu and Kashmir from a full-fledged state to 2 union territories, neither the people of the state nor the country responded to such absurd decision. It was as if it was a dictatorship.
One of the key features of an authoritarian leader is his strong personality and strong leadership qualities. Much before the 2014 elections, Manmohan Singh was accused of being a week leader, and having a strong leader was projected being a need for India. There was a push for Modi to be an undisputed top leader when he was asked why he works for 18 hours a day, why he does not get tired. Many people voted for Modi because they wanted a strong leader, and thought he is one - giving credit to the popular mass media which created that perception.
All the decisions that Modi took were implemented with a big bang. This was just to show that certain things were impossible under previous leadership, and only Modi could implement them. Demonetisation, Balakot airstrike, and abrogation of article 370 are some of the examples.
Most authoritarian rulers do not like the institutions because they limit their power. Therefore we can see how systematically all the democratic institutions are being subverted in India ever since the BJP government took charge in 2014. All those institutions, such as the Supreme Court, Election Commission, Reserve bank of India, etc., designed to keep checks and balances, have been taken control of by the Prime Minister’s Office and now function on government's dictates. The aim of subverting the institutions is to keep the personality of Mr. Modi unchecked and help him become a dictator.
Silencing the opposition and all the dissenting voices is another tactic in helping establish an authoritarian rule. All the voices that dare to question Modi or the government, or criticize its decisions are put behind bars - be it film stars, actors, social workers, writers, athletes, or intellectuals. This is done either by putting them in jails or trolling them, or sending the CBI or ED after them. Anurag Kashyap, Tappsee Pannu, Disha Ravi were vocal about their viewpoint and faced the government's wrath. Comedians like Kunal Kamara, Munnwar Farooki were put behind bars even for their comic comments. The recent sedition charges against Ayesha Sultana, the Lakashdweep filmmakers, for speaking against the dictatorial policies of the administrator Praful Patel, has led to a spate of resignations by the BJP MLA’s on the island, are glaring example how democracy is being curbed.
There is a gradual and systematic erosion of freedom of the press, the people, and the institutions. And this will pave the way for the establishment of a dictator.
Seven years into power, BJP has become the richest political party in the world. The money is used to topple the elected governments in different states. The elected members of other parties are offered crores of rupees to switch over to the ruling party.
The Indian Republic is being recast as a ‘Hindu Nation’ where all the critics are put behind bars or bullied or trolled. Decents are being silenced with an iron hand. The press and the media that disagree with or question the government’s policies or decisions and do not toe the government's line are suffocated. For the last few years, we have seen how veteran journalists like Abisar Sharma, Punya Prasun, Parson Bajpai, Vinod Dua were shunted out from their jobs. The rest of the media houses are ‘bought’ by the government as they are heavily dependent on the government advertisement revenue for their survival. These media houses have to speak for the government or shut their shop.
Another tactic used by the government to control the bureaucracy was to appoint secretaries in the central ministries from the back door. Officers were not from the Indian administrative services who take twenty-five or more years to reach that position. Hardcore RSS people who had no experience in the administration were given plum postings as sectaries and other key government jobs. This random selection of officials is unprecedented and a very dangerous trend. This also helps in curbing the democratic processes.
A recent report in the wire says that this is the third consecutive year where India has topped the global charts of internet shutdown. The digital right group ‘Access Now’ says that in 2020 India imposed the highest number of shutdowns in the world. Out of 159 internet shutdowns globally, India accounted for 109. Ever since article 370 was abrogated in Jammu and Kashmir, the internet services were reduced to 2G permanently. The United Nations had to intervene for the restoration of 4g services after two years.
In the recent spectrum allocation, Jio, owned by Mukesh Ambani group, has been allocated 57122 cr , with Airtel 18,695cr and Vodafone idea 1993 cr. If jio was to be given 2/3rd of the spectrum, then what was the point of auctioning? How is it going to benefit the government? Mukesh Ambani is the biggest beneficiary in the tenure of this government, with his wealth multiplying, and who is also believed to be the BJP’s financier. By allowing the most of the spectrum, the government has got social media in its hands. It can shut down the internet any time with a 2/3rd blackout of social media, at which the present government is an expert. After taking over the electronic and print media in its favour by funding them or giving them a chunk of the government’s advertisement revenue, the only medium that exposes its wrongdoings is social media like YouTube, Twitter, etc. Now the governing has come up with a series of rules and regulations that these OTT platforms have to follow. The government has made it mandatory for these social media platforms to put up office and compliance officers. Regulations for making it compulsory to show the originator of the message. News websites will have to be registered with the ministry of broadcasting. This covers only social media and does not mention mainstream media or print media. This is basically to control the independent news media like The Print, Scroll, Quint, HW news, etc.
Fareed Zakaria, in his show on CNN, said that India, from democracy, has fallen to partially free ever since BJP came to power, and they have clamped down heavily on freedom of speech. The media is clearly divided into Godi media, which toes the line of the government, and the media that questions the government.
Criminal charges have been applied on political opponents, journalists, and all those who've dared to oppose the government. Colonial-era sedition law has been used indiscriminately on all opponents. Disha Ravi and Ayesha Sultana of Lakshadweep are the latest victims of the sedation law. Almost 7,136 people have been arrested since 2014.
Abrogation of article 370 in J&K and reducing it to a union territory meant taking away special powers of the state. The state has never been free after that. Thousands have been detained, and hundreds of thousands of security personnel roaming in the streets, and the internet shut off for months resulted a collapsed state economy. A similar action is being repeated in Lakshadweep, which has a very low crime rate, peace-loving people living under a reasonably cohesive social fabric.
The income tax officers (IT), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and the BJP IT Cell are the main tools of the government to tackle its opponents. All these agencies are let loose on the person who dares to question the decisions of the government. We have seen this lately on the protesting farmers, Mamta Banerjee, and many others. NDTV and its owner Pronay Roy have faced the wrath of these agencies for many years for practicing true journalism.
The President of India, the custodian of the constitution, works as if he is a part of the ruling government. Supreme Court judges are manipulated to give judgments that favour the government, like the one we have seen in the case of Ayodhya mosque, with CJI Gogoi awarded a Rajya Saba seat after his retirement and a cosy bungalow in his native state of Assam. Later, Justice Arun Mishra was made the Chairman of the Human Rights Commission.
All those officers, be the governor of Reserve Bank of India Urjit Patel, Raghu Ram Rajan, and many others, were quickly replaced and shunted off because they did not agree to do what the government dictates.
In the recent elections in Bengal, Prashant Kishore has accused the Election Commission of being the extension of the ruling BJP government.
Delhi kept burning for three days where rioters were given a free hand to kill and burn whatever they want. With two governments in Delhi, the state and the state government, President and LG, residing a few kilometers away, no effort was made to stop the riots for three days. Many places of worship were destroyed, and houses burnt. All the victims were made accused, and cases were filed against them. Many are still languishing in jails. Lawyer Mahmood Pracha , defending the minorities who were implicated in false cases, had his office raided by the Income Tax and Enforcement Departments. His laptop and all files were confiscated.
Delhi High Court, while granting bail to three activists arrested a year ago in connection with Delhi riots followed by CAA protests, said in his judjement that there is a difference between “constitutionally guaranteed right to protest” and terrorist activity. The court further remarked that “in its anxiety to suppress dissent in the mind of the state, the line between the constitutionally guaranteed right to protest and terrorist activity seems to get somewhat blurred.” These lines of the judges have a deep meaning, and all of us should ponder over it.
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