Q1.
Do you know the term for a society where people select their leaders? How do you think people can benefit from such a situation? What could happen if they live under leaders that they did not choose? (Hint: Think back to what you're learning in the theme ‘Governance and Democracy’!) Write your thoughts in a paragraph of 100–150 words.
Answer
The term is democracy — from the Greek dēmos (people) and kratos (rule): rule by the people. In India we choose our leaders by election, and that makes India a democratic republic.
| If people choose their leaders | If people do not choose their leaders |
|---|---|
| Accountability. A leader who wants to be re-elected has to answer for what he or she did with the last five years | A leader who cannot be removed does not have to answer to anybody |
| Peaceful change. A government can be replaced by counting votes instead of by fighting | The only ways left to change a ruler are revolt or waiting for the ruler to die |
| Everyone's problems reach the table. Because every vote counts the same, a leader cannot ignore the poorest village in the constituency | Decisions tend to favour whoever is close to the ruler |
| Freedom to disagree. Criticism is normal and legal, so mistakes get pointed out early | Criticism becomes risky, so mistakes are hidden and grow |
| People feel responsible. If you chose the leader, the result is partly yours — that makes citizens participate | People feel the government is something that happens to them |
The link back to this chapter. The Vedas give us only a few clues about how the janas ran their affairs — the words rājā (a king or ruler), and sabhā and samiti, “both of which refer to a collective gathering or assembly”. A society that has words for assemblies has some habit of deciding things together. But the chapter is honest: “Not much is known of how these janas governed their society.” We should not claim that Vedic society was a democracy — only that the vocabulary of collective discussion is very old in India.
Sample answer (about 130 words):
“A society in which people select their own leaders is called a democracy. India is the world's largest democracy, and we choose our leaders through elections. People benefit in several ways. Leaders must explain their decisions, because they have to face the voters again. A government that is not working can be changed peacefully, by voting rather than by fighting. Since every vote is equal, the concerns of ordinary people — roads, schools, water, jobs — cannot be ignored. And people are free to disagree, so mistakes are pointed out and corrected.
If people live under leaders they did not choose, there is no way to remove a leader who is unjust. Decisions may serve only a small group, criticism may become dangerous, and ordinary people lose the feeling that the country belongs to them.”
“A society in which people select their own leaders is called a democracy. India is the world's largest democracy, and we choose our leaders through elections. People benefit in several ways. Leaders must explain their decisions, because they have to face the voters again. A government that is not working can be changed peacefully, by voting rather than by fighting. Since every vote is equal, the concerns of ordinary people — roads, schools, water, jobs — cannot be ignored. And people are free to disagree, so mistakes are pointed out and corrected.
If people live under leaders they did not choose, there is no way to remove a leader who is unjust. Decisions may serve only a small group, criticism may become dangerous, and ordinary people lose the feeling that the country belongs to them.”
Why the box puts this question inside a chapter on the Vedas: the theme running through your Social Science book is that ideas have histories. Words like sabhā and samiti are more than three thousand years old, and the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha in Delhi still carry the word sabhā in their names. The practice of sitting together to decide is one of the oldest continuous habits in this Subcontinent.