There are those in history who questioned the ability of India to sustain democracy and maintain stability. Some felt that we would become a divided nation and our Union wouldn’t last for long due to the multi-cultural and multi-ethnic nature of our populace. There cannot be a more perfect answer to this than the celebration of 75 years of our Independence as a milestone in the journey of our motherland as a sovereign nation. It is in fact the people of this great nation who are the principal deity to be celebrated in this Amrit Mahotsav as the destiny of any nation is in the hands of its people and not solely the shoulders of its leaders.
On the eve of our independence, Pandit Nehru captured in his famous speech ‘Tryst with Destiny’ what the goal of India was, “To bring freedom and opportunity to the common man, to the peasants and workers of India; to fight and end poverty and ignorance and disease; to build up a prosperous, democratic and progressive nation, and to create social, economic and political institutions which will ensure justice and fullness of life to every man and woman”. Our collective resolve as a nation has been to ensure that our society remains free, fair, and just. Our Independence Day is a celebration of the resoluteness of the Indian people. This freedom struggle is historic as it has shown the world how the principles of non-violence, civil disobedience, and peaceful protest as tools used by the oppressed common man can achieve the goal of independence.
While we have tremendously grown as a nation, we must also use this opportunity for introspection and determine whether we are on the correct path that our forefathers envisioned for us. Many nations in the post-colonization era have not been able to sustain, ours has due to the respect we have had for the voice and will of the people. Peaceful protests for preserving the fundamental principles of secularism, socialism, justice, and equality are needed in any healthy democracy when those in power waver from them. Today there seems to be an upward trend in stifling those who disagree with the majority. India is ranked 46th on the Global Democracy Index Report of 2021 and has a low score of 5 in the category of political culture. Hatred towards those who disagree with you has become the way for certain people to express their disapproval. Just because someone has a different view they are branded as unpatriotic. The inclination to silence people who speak up against those holding power is detrimental to democracy.
The Parliament, Legislative Assemblies, and Councils are our temples of democracy. It is here that the idea of debate and dissent must be protected and defended fearlessly. It is by working collectively and listening to the opposition that the government can ensure that the concerns of all citizens are addressed adequately. And we have had ample examples, like when Prime Minister Pt. Nehru agreed to a demand by a young Member of Parliament Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee about the Chinese aggression issue in 1962. Pt. Nehru refused to hold a secret session as it was an issue of great national interest. The trust, goodwill and dignity in parliamentary debates between the treasury and the opposition are a rarity today.
It is interesting to note that the number of political parties registered with the Election Commission is more than 2,800 and is proof of the diverse ideologies people have in a democracy. India cannot function under One Party because its beauty lies in many parties, many ideologies, many cultures but One Nation.
The core Indian value of tolerance is fast eroding. Secularism and the right to profess any religion freely is a facet of our democracy that we must cherish. In the city of Mumbai, during the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi, when the famous Lalbaugcha Raja leaves for visarjan, at Byculla the Lord is offered a garland by the Hindustan Masjid Committee and the people from various faiths pay their respects to Ganpati Bappa. Instead of pitting citizens against one another based on religious faith and creating cracks in society let us celebrate this melting pot of cultures.
Denying and manipulating facts, changing and distorting the truth, and silencing voices should not be the Indian story. India has many things to be proud of but not this. Transparency to the people is what we the political class should promise every citizen in the celebration of these glorious 75 years.
I have great faith in the resilience of the Indian People. We have always cherished our hard-fought freedom and the Indian people have demonstrated that even during the darkest days no power can destroy the idea of unity and oneness. Let us create the ideal India that our founding fathers envisioned; a nation where unemployment, poverty, and disharmony are a distant reality and where equality, communal harmony, and peace exist. What – and how much – of an Amrit India we leave for the future generations is up to us.
The author is a former minister and Maharashtra president of the Nationalist Congress Party