Syed Mustafa Ahmad
Dictatorship can be defined as the form of government in which executive, legislature, and judiciary is in the hands of a single person. This form of government is never accountable to the people and there is no transparency in the functioning of the government. Under a dictatorship, the dictators can’t be removed by the common people. They do not give heed to the aspirations of the people. They live according to their whims. In contrast to this, is democracy. Democracy is defined as the government of the people. In a democracy, people are the actual source of power. All the government departments are subordinate to a common man. This form of government is accountable. There is greater transparency in the functioning of the government. The leaders can’t act according to their choices. There is a proper mechanism that is to be followed. There can be no leniency on the part of the leaders. If they are caught sleeping at the inappropriate time, they will be kicked out. So, in this regard, democracy looks the best form of government. On the paper, it means that there will be only development and nothing else. But when we remove the layers of democracy and peep deep into it, the reality begins to come on the surface. The dirt that is settled at the bottom, is visible. Now, we are in a position to have some knowledge of both the forms of government. Before saying anything else, let us know how democracy becomes a dictatorship.
In a democracy, the decision-making body is the legislature. In India, it is called the Parliament. The decisions are made for the public. So, it becomes necessary that people are taken into account. People are taken into account through elections. After the election process, they are never consulted again. It is here where the door for dictatorship opens. When people are the real source of power, they should be consulted at every step. Recently Article 370 was abrogated in a dictatorial way. The Parliament didn’t consult the stakeholders of this article, i.e., the natives of Jammu and Kashmir. The elected government trespassed all the laws and regulations and repealed the article that is still enshrined in the Constitution of India. It is the best example of dictatorship where the state is kept under curfew, the internet is snapped, non-locals are advised to go to their homes, the annual Yatra is curtailed, the forces are brought up in large numbers, hysteria is found among people, etc., to name a few. The Parliament is for the welfare of people. When this very institution is used for a particular thought, there remains no scope for accountability, transparency, demonstrations, etc.
The second example of this can be found in the case of the executive. In India, the executive works under the shadow of the legislature. The executive whether the Prime Minister or the President has to act according to the laws and regulations of the Constitution. It means that the Parliament is above the executive. But when the Parliament is subordinate to the executive, it demonstrates that it is no longer a democracy. How can an executive dictate the words to the Parliament when there are more than 500 members of different thoughts? Or how can an executive choke the voice of other members to manipulate any event for the party or himself/ herself? There are some instances where the executive pressurizes the Parliament for the benefit of some mean benefits. It then paves the way for the rise of dictatorship.
The third in this line is the judiciary. It is the soul of any constitution. Without it, a country never develops in any real sense. Democracy stands on this third pillar. It is also called the Right to Constitutional Remedies(Article 32) in the Indian Constitution. In short, it is the last hope of those who have met injustice. But the tragedy falls when the independence of the Judiciary is compromised. When the other two organs of the government use this organ for the petty gains, democracy loses its value. Recently the cases of Article 370, Ram-Mandir, CAA, etc., make it clear that the Judiciary has become the toothless tiger. The judges of the courts are not in a position to decide according to the prescribed laws and regulations. When this situation happens, democracy becomes a dictatorship.
The last in this line is the suppression of dissent. Dissent is the safety valve of democracy. It is one of the most important characteristics of democracy. It provides life to democracy. Suppression of dissent is the death of democracy. If dissent is not allowed, the real purpose of democracy is lost. This situation is seen every nook and corner of the country. In the recent months, dissent has been more suppressed. It simply paves the way for dictatorship.
This is the discussion of how dictatorship reigns in the age of democracy. It is all about power, money, crimes, loot and plunder, etc. A broad consensus should be there to opt either for democracy or dictatorship. The common people should be provided with opportunities to develop. The alluring slogans of democracy and dictatorship don’t help anyone at the present. There should be respect for humanity or human rights.
The author is a civil service aspirant and can be reached at syedmustafaahmad9@gmail.com
