Why democracy? - Concepts - Chapter 1 Class 9 Political Science - What Is Democracy? Why Democracy - Political Science

Last updated at April 16, 2024 by Teachoo

ARGUMENTS AGAINST DEMOCRACY

Leaders keep changing in a democracy. This leads to instability.
Democracy is all about political competition and power play. There is no scope for morality.
So many people have to be consulted in a democracy that it leads to delays.
Elected leaders do not know the best interest of the people. It leads to a bad decision.
Democracy leads to corruption for it is based on electoral competition.
Ordinary people don’t know what is good for them ; they should not decide anything.
Democracy is not a magical solution to all problems.
Democracy has not ended poverty in our country and other parts of the world.
Democracy as a form of government only ensures that people take their own decisions.
This does not guarantee that their decisions will be good.
These arguments show that democracy of the kind we see may not be the ideal form of government.

China’s famine of 1958-1961 was the worst recorded famine in world history.
During those days, India’s economic condition was not much better than China's.
The existence of democracy in India made the Indian government respond to food scarcity in a way that the Chinese government did not.

These examples bring out one of the reasons why democracy is considered the best form of government.
Democracy is better than any other form of government in responding to the needs of the people.
A non-democratic government may and can respond to the people’s needs, but it all depends on the wishes of the people who rule.
A democracy requires that the rulers have to attend to the needs of the people.
A democratic government is a better government because it is a more accountable form of government.
Democracy is based on consultation and discussion.
A democratic decision always involves many persons, discussions, and meetings.
When several people put their heads together, they can point out possible mistakes in any decision.
This reduces the chances of rash or irresponsible decisions.
Thus democracy improves the quality of decision-making.
Democracy provides a method to deal with differences and conflicts.
People belong to different regions , speak different languages, practice different religions, and have different castes.
They look at the world very differently and have different preferences.

Democracy provides the only peaceful solution to this problem. In a diverse country like India, democracy keeps our country together.
Democracy enhances the dignity of citizens.
Democracy is based on the principle of political equality, on recognizing that the poorest and least educated have the same status as the rich and the educated.

People are not subjects of a ruler, t hey are the rulers themselves . Even when they make mistakes, they are responsible for their conduct.
Democracy is better than other forms of government because it allows us to correct our own mistakes.

There is no guarantee that mistakes cannot be made in a democracy. No form of government can guarantee that.
The advantage of a democracy is that such mistakes cannot be hidden for long. There is a space for public discussions on these mistakes. And there is room for correction.
Democracy cannot get us everything and is not the solution to all problems. But it is better than any other alternative that we know.
It offer s better chances of a good decision, it is likely to respect people’s wishes and allows different kinds of people to live together.
Even when it fails to do some of these things, it allows a way of correcting its mistakes and offers more dignity to all citizens.
That is why democracy is considered the best form of government .