Elite and Masses, Linkage and Disconnect During the Period of System Transformation Case of India

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1 Surinder K Shukla Elite and Masses, Linkage and Disconnect During the Period of System Transformation Case of India On the broad canvas the Second World War, the newly emerged world powers began to play the game of ideologies. Remaining part of the twentieth century was to remain largely preoccupied with the business of ideologies. Most nations developed their relations with other nations keeping these ideologies in mind. During this phase of ideologies, individual continued to remain a small non-entity, on whose behalf the nations played games of ideologies both in the national and international areas. Significantly, the issues of ethnicity, religion, race, language, culture etc. receded to the background and had little importance in a world that was preoccupied with the nation-building theory based on ideological divisions. By the turn of the century, however, ideologies crystallised into the global trend toward democracy leading to different histories of democratisation. During the three waves of democracy, 550 subtypes of democracy have been identified (Diamond, 1996). Much before this, right from the time of Utilitarians i.e. Bentham and Mill, individual assumed importance, the individual wanted to be left alone, thereby reaching the zenith of individualism. This alienation of individual gave enough leeway to the elite to encourage the growth of capitalism. Clearly during this period, till the end of the 20th century, individual remained de-linked from the ruling elite. I This study becomes important because India is the largest democracy in the world. The post-colonial India, like the rest of the world was focused on the dominant political values embedded in the philosophy of constitutionalism i.e. practice of constitutional governments. Constitutionalism hinges on two-fold relationships: one between the government and the citizens, and the other deals with relationship between one authority and another, within the governmental structure. These relationships, made possible by constitutional law, ultimately give space to the citizen during the painful transition (Achin Vanaik) from British authoritarianism to the adoption of democratic practices in India. Democracy was earned in India by the masses but unlike in the west where long time struggles by the masses resulted in democracies, in Asia, more specifically India, struggle for democracy was very short. It was the British educated elite who led the masses towards the path of democracy. Because of this, there was an inbuilt feeling of 1

2 gratitude in the psyche of the masses, who were expected to accept without question anything that was doled out to them by the ruling elite by way of laws and other programmes both social and economic. One key factor that the Constitution Fathers had to take into cognisance was the attempt at reconciliation of pluralism with the concept of nationhood. Plural laws constitutional, political, social, cultural, religious were enshrined in the Constitution of India. Immediately in the post-colonial period, the task of reconciliation became relatively simpler as the citizens were still fresh with the fervour of nationalism that had brought them independence from British authoritarianism the masses seemed to share an easy rapport with the elite. This signifies a period of linkage between elite and the masses. Gradually but surely, the process of modernisation in politics, economy and culture began. Perhaps the process of modernity (Leo Strauss) began from dissatisfaction with the gulf between the is and ought. But as post-colonialism settled down with its patron-client relationship (between elites and masses) interactive forces between plural laws, ethnicity, religious, democracy ( massification of democracy took place in India only in the 70s) and Human Laws needed to be addressed anew. Besides the masses were faced with certain insecurities, such as problem of poverty, unmet human needs, high aspirations, inequality (inclusion and exclusion), and the social consequences of economic, environmental and political crises posed a major threat leading to tensions between masses and the elites. Consequently adjustment, accommodation and compromise, had to be made between elite and masses. This leads us to the question as to what mechanism was employed by the elite to assuage the masses and also help them in overcoming the insecurities. This question assumes importance especially when the elite were either preoccupied with the political scenario within the country both at the national and local level, or as time passed and as the patriotic fervour of pre-independence era began to fade, the elite seemed to set new and changed ethnical standards including corruption at one level and populist slogans and agendas clearly aimed at electoral gains. Beginning with the seventies, the following trends can be noticed in Indian politics which give the impression that India is a state of permanent revolution (Trotksy) Lumpenisation and criminalisation of the political process Efforts to undermine free and fair elections (e.g. booth capturing, repolls etc.) Violence inside legislatures Partisan attitude of the speaker 2

3 Increasing unaccountability of executive of the legislature in matters such as having short session, issuing of ordinances, absence of Prime Minister during session etc. Growth of dictatorial tendencies reflected in arbitrary dismissal of state governors, end of intra-party democracy resulting in a concern with the growth of charismatic leadership in various political parties. These issues along with those related to India s governance, the relationship between its democracy and social violence and its federal design and party politics are all the subject of a very lively debate among its leading scholars: Rajni Kothari for analysing Indian political system, Paul Brass for his work on political identity, ethnic conflicts and the native of violence in India, Atul Kohli has built on Myron Weiner s work at state level politics and constructed a conceptual framework to analyse institutional decay and weakening governance. II Ethnicity has played a remarkable dual role in Indian politics. At times, ethnicity has linked the masses with the elite; at other times it has become a source of disconnection between them. Ethnicity has been recognised not as a primordial given but as social and political construction. Ethnicity is the creation of elites (Brass, 1985) who draw upon, distort and sometimes fabricate materials from the cultures of the groups they wish to represent in order to protect their well-being or existence, or to gain political and economic advantage for those groups as well as themselves. It is argued by some scholars that ethnic diversity in the Indian population has indeed supported the process of democratic politics (Varshney 1995, Vanhanen 1988). There is much evidence on the use of various ethnic divisions in the democratic process, including selection of candidates, for the elections. From this perspective, ethnic divisions have provided a solid basis for democratic competition, a view corroborated as early as 1966 (Halappa). On the other hand, ethnic leanings have helped the masses to carve out inroads in the centralising authority of the State, which unleashed forces uniformation through planned economic development policies and more recently as a part of the process of globalisation. Unfortunately in the period immediately following post-colonialism in India, all trans-national politics came to be viewed as suspect and in extreme cases (e.g. Punjab) it was even considered as separatist, leading to a sense of suspicion and doubt between masses and the elite. The social consequences of the interaction has 3

4 ranged from subdued tension to violent outbursts. At the height of militancy in Punjab ( ) it became very difficult to even address the relevant issues of militancy with complete objectivity, let alone resolve them with any success. Some other issues dominating the transitional system of India are: Patron-client relationship: In Indian politics, power is woven around primordial loyalties like caste, class, religion etc. which in turn influence the patron-client relationship both in terms of mobilisation as well as in terms of formal economic, social and, therefore, political patronage. Nation within nation concept: For example, village, community, region, sect, ethnicity are all focused on a sense of belonging. Besides, the sons of soil, tons of toil theory exists in India, making the concept of regionalism very strong indeed. Basic conflict of we and they : This conflict has manifested itself in various ways in Indian polity e.g. religious traditions, centre-state federal relations, rural-urban divide etc. There exists two contradictory perspectives on the basic conflict of we and they between the religious traditions in India (Imitiaz Ahmad, 2000). There exists a fundamental difference between the indigenous religious traditions that are off-shoots of Hinduism and those who came from outside. Constitution Fathers were aware of the dichotomy and hence suggested a secular tradition for the country i.e. State has no religion and treats all religions equally. Unity and diversity: Although both these concepts are diametrically opposite, yet they are not antithetical. Both are important and in a way limit each other. According to Bhikhu Parekh (2001) we should not aim at so extensive and deep, a sense of unity that no space is left for diversity, nor tolerate so wide and deep a diversity that the society gets fragmented and cannot effectively pursue common interest. India is a land with many geographical divisions, each one of which has a different language, possibly different God to worship, different rituals and mores (compulsive 4

5 tradition). It s a miracle that there is some semblance of cohesion and even though there are voices of dissent, the unity of India, in general term still exists. III The key transformations in Indian politics are: the caste revolution and the rise of backward castes to power; the history of accommodation and its breakdown in states like Punjab, Kashmir and North-east; and the decline of Congress Party s dominance and the emergence of Coalition Politics. Whereas the rise of backward classes and of ethnic nationalism changed the social and economic landscape, the end of Congress System and the rise of Hindu nationalism and regional forces in its place have altered the balance of political and ideological forms in India. This is referred to as consociational democracy (Lijphart 1989) based on partnership; a coalescent rather than an adversarial model, characterized by a grand coalition government of segmental elites. Erosion of people s faith in the single party s capacity to direct the levels of development, either as promised in the party manifesto or as anticipated by the people had led to the coalition era in Indian politics resulting in newer relationship between masses and elite. The issue of Human Rights has made the relationship between elite and masses a difficult one. But wherever Human Rights are supposed to be implemented, conflicts of values are inevitable. These conflicts, which arise, can be of three different kinds: 1. Conflict between individual or groups claiming the same right (for instance to assemble or to demonstrate) but with different interest. 2. Conflicts between different but equally legitimate rights (for instance between the freedom of speech for one and personal dignity for another person). 3. Conflicts on the state or national level between the rights of individuals or groups and interests or the state to guarantee security and public rules. Human Right issues largely became the focus in post Operation Bluestar Punjab and Kashmir. Besides, it is commonly argued by neo-pluralist (JK Galbraith and Charles Lindblom The Affluent Society 1963, 1985/Politics and Markets 1977) that it is impossible to portray all organised interests as equally powerful since in capitalist economy, business enjoys advantages, which other groups cannot rival. The possibility of this argument led to agitativeness in the minds of people residing in prosperous states like Punjab, etc. The Punjab also known as bread-basket and lived in by volatile Sikhs, began to react and demand greater share in power politics. 5

6 Citizenship, industrialism, nationalism and democracy intertwined in post-colonial India to create the contemporary chaos of ethno-national conflict (Riggs, 1998 IPSR). To be fair to the elites, it can be argued that due to high aspirations of the masses in free India, the state was caught in a dilemma of securing itself from the forces and social and cultural destabilisation and creating a stable national-cultural basis for its rule in the society. Further economic pressures mounted, rupee had to be devalued and in order to forge intimate economic and political relationship with the masses, the elite were willing to sacrifice democracy and human rights. Elite Bargaining Theory of Democracy In the elite bargain approach, democratisation is explained by examining choices, bargains, power plays and most important, the interrelationship between the sequencing of elite actors. Judged by this standard India will perhaps for a long time remain a transitional democracy. Elite bargain theorists are, therefore, able to distinguish between transitional and consolidated democracies (something that structural approach cannot do). The consensus arrived at by the elite is seldom about the substance or outcome of the policy but about open, clearly defined rules of competition in which the winners will not seek to exclude the losers to form the government. Democratisation according to this theory is thus a process of institutionalising uncertainty about political outcomes. The elite bargain theory permits us to focus on actors with definable interests competing with each other to maximise their winnings in the face of definable constraints. This helps to crystallise political interaction between agents of transformation in countries. IV A lot of work is being done on transitology theories above transition from authoritarianism to democracy. Democratic consolidation is understood as a discernible process by which the rules, institutions and constraints of democracy come to constitute the one legitimate framework for seeking and exercising political power (Diamond and others 1997). But the yardstick of structural transformation or procedural conditions, applied in the western democracies can obviously not be used in the Asian context beyond a point. Although poverty, violence, inequality and underdevelopment still pervade India s democracy, these factors need not constrain South Asian s transition to democracy although they can slow down its consolidation (Chadda, 2000). Besides, factors such as ethnicity, communal violence and electoral 6

7 expansions, state coercion and institution building efforts have all coalesced to create a real world within which democracy has to operate. By all counts, India is a functioning democracy but that it is a well-governed democracy is doubted by some scholars. Niraja Gopal Jayal (1998) for example refers to two ways in which citizenship (which lies at the heart of democracy) is undermined: (a) when the State fails to ensure the enforceability of the constitutionally guaranteed rights of equal citizenship (b) and when there exist inadequate conditions that would have made possible the effective exercise of citizenship rights. There are, therefore, often manipulations ranging from expedient majoritarianism to cynical utilitarianism. The procedural emphasis is based on a minimalist, institutionalist and even instrumentalist conception of democracy. For an ideal democracy to exist, it is important firstly that the voice of individual be heard. If that does not happen, then either the structure or the functioning of democracy is faulty. Secondly, the interest (of whichever party comes to power) must be ideological and not based on selfish interests. That is, the party in power must not dole out benefits only to those who toe its line. If this happens then a corrupt democracy, rather than an honest democracy is likely to exist. Like beauty and truth, honesty is the value of human life. In India, there is a certain amount of satisfaction at the way democracy is functioning although much needs to be done still. The dynamics or democratic satisfaction in India can be visualised at three levels: (i) The level of democratic satisfaction of Constitution Fathers, their thought process and fears about the risk involved in implanting an almost foreign Westminster model. This level of democratic satisfaction seems quite high, as structural foundations of the Constitution are sound and cover all aspects of governance by State. (ii) The level and vicissitudes of democratic satisfaction of Government of India beginning with Nehru, (as there immediately followed the Nehruvian era) till recent times: A distinctive model of federalism has evolved in India (despite the errant Punjab and Kashmir). The level of procedural democracy and resulting relationship of masses and elite seems to be working well. (iii) The level of democratic satisfaction of People of India: This is reflected in the preamble of the Constitution of India which opens with We the People of India and ends with give to ourselves this Constitution thereby reposing immense faith in the people. At this level, much needs to be done in order to improve peoples satisfaction. 7

8 In order to gain confidence of the masses, the elite in the Government must ensure that the institutions of the State, especially the civil service, the army, the police and the judiciary are completely impartial and insulated against ethnic and religious pressures. However, among the problems (Vir Sanghvi 2001) that lie with the Indian version of democracy are that the election results have repeatedly shown that the will of the people does not necessarily take into account either governance or morality issues e.g. the masses treat criminals as Robin Hoods and vote them to office. Another interesting phenomenon that afflicts democracy is the anti-incumbency vote. Rare is the politician who places the rule of law over populism. And sadly, rarer still is the voter who regards morality as more important than personal benefit. A ray of hope lies in that, in India, we have had historically evolving patterns, strongly influenced by national movement, welfare ideals, pluralism and goals of social equality forging ahead towards interactive relationship between the masses and elite of India. References Ansari, Iqbal (1996) ed. COMMUNAL RIOTS. The State and Law in India, Qazi Pub., New Delhi. Ahmad, Imtiaz and others (2000) ed. PLURALISM AND EQUALITY Values in Indian Society and Politics, Sage. Brass, Paul (1990) POLITICS OF INDIA SINCE INDEPENDENCE, Cambridge University Press, New York. Brass Paul (1997) THEFT OF AN IDOL Text and context in the Representation of Collective Violence. Princeton University Press, Princeton. Chadda, Maya (1997) ETHNICITY SECURITY AND SEPARATISM IN INDIA, Columbia University Press, New York. Chadda, Maya (2000) BUILDING DEMOCRACY IN S. ASIA India, Nepal, Pakistan, Lynne Rienner Publications. Chibber, Pradeep K (1999) DEMOCRACY WITHOUT ASSOCIATION Transformation of the Party System and Social Cleavages in India, University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor. Das, Arvind (1994) A NATION IN THE MAKING, Manohar, ND. Diamond, Larry and others (1997) CONSOLIDATING THE THIRD WAVE DEMOCRACIES, John Hopkins University Press. Ghosh, Partho S (1999) BJP AND THE EVOLUTION OF HINDU NATIONALISM From Periphery to Centre (on the need for an inter-religious dialogue) OUP, pp Halappa, G.S. (1966) DILEMMAS OF DEMOCRATIC POLITICS IN INDIA, Manaktala, Bombay. Hansen, Thomas Blom (1999) THE SAFFRON WAVE Deomcracy and Hindu Nationalism in Modern India, Princeton University Press, Princeton. Jalal, Ayesha (1997) IDEOLOGY AND THE STRUGGLE FOR DEMOCRATIC INSTITUTIONS in Victoria Schoffield et. OLD ROADS NEW HIGHWAYS, Oxford University Press. Jayal, Niraja Gopal (1999) DEMOCRACY AND THE STATE Welfare, secrularism and Development in Contemporary India, Oxford University Press. Kohli, Atul (1990) INDIA S DEMOCRACY An Analysis of Changing State-Society Relations, Princeton University Press, Princeton. 8

9 Kohli, Atul (1991) ed. DEMOCRACY AND DISCONTENT India s Growing Crisis of Governability. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge. Lijphart, Arend (1989) DEMOCRACY IN PLURAL SOCIETIES, A Comparative Exploration, Popular Prakashan. Mahajan, Gurpreet (1998) ed. DEMOCRACY, DIFFERENCE AND SOCIAL JUSTICE, Oxford University Press. Mitra, Subrata K and VB Singh (1999) DEMOCRACY AND SOCIAL CHANGE IN INDIA A Cross-Sectional Analysis of the National Electorate, Altamira Press, London. Pettigrew, Joyce JM (1995) THE SIKHS OF THE PUNJAB Unheard Voices of State and Guerilla Violence, Zed Books, London. Rajgopal, PR (1987) COMMUNAL VIOLENCE IN INDIA, Uppal Publishing House, New Delhi. Rastogi, PN (1986) ETHNIC TENSIONS IN INDIAN SOCIETY, Mittal Publications, New Delhi. Rudolph, Lloyd and Susanne Rudolph (1987) IN PURSUIT OF LAKSHMI, Chicago University Press. Sanghvi, Vir (2001) MORALITY Vs. WILL OF THE PEOPLE. Hindustan Times, 9 September 2001, p.13. Subramanian, Narendra (1999) ETHNICITY AND POPULIST MOBILIZATION Political parties, citizens and democracy in South India, OUP, New Delhi. Thakur, Ramesh (1995) THE GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS OF INDIA, St. Martin s Press, New York. Thomas, Raju GC (1996) DEMOCRACY, SECURITY AND DEVELOPMENT IN INDIA, St. Martin s press, New York. Vanaik, Achin (1990) THE PAINFUL TRANSITION Bourgeois Democracy in India, Vesso, London. Vanaik, Achin (1998) IDENTITIES RIGHTS Aspects of Liberal democracy in India, Verso, London. Vanhanen, Tatu (1991) POLITICS OF ETHNIC NEPOTISM India, As An Example Sterling, New Delhi. Vanhanen, Tatu (1998) PROSPECTS FOR DEMOCRACY IN ASIA, Sterling, New Delhi. Vanhanen, Tatu (1999) ETHNIC CONFLICTS EXPLAINED BY ETHNIC NEPOTISM, Research in Biopolitics, Vol.7, Jai/Elsevier Science. Varshney, Ashutosh (1998). DEMOCRACY DEVELOPMENT AND THE COUNTRYSIDE Urban-rural struggles in India. Cambridge University Press. Weiner, Myron (1989) THE INDIAN PARADOX, Sage Publications. 9

10 Paper presented at the 2001 Conference, September 13-15, University of Osnabrueck, GERMANY IPSA RC 16 Elite and Masses, Linkage and Disconnect During the Period of System Transformation Case of India 10

11 11 Surinder K Shukla Panjab University, Chandigarh INDIA surinderkshukla@hotmail.com