I. Political Capture and the Erosion of Democratic Spirit
In a democracy, theoretically, power belongs to the people. But in India, as in many other developing countries, after independence a class of politicians has emerged to capture and usurp political power, dominating the governance of the entire society. Formed into political parties, they are not empowering citizens but, on the contrary, spreading a political culture that distances power relations from human and social relations. As a strategy, they are diverting the attention of citizens to glorify ― national interests and ― national development, which rarely translates into human and social development. They prevent the growth of ― social leaders, without whom there can be no genuine social progress. This emergence of a self-serving political class confirms the fears of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, who warned in the Constituent Assembly debates that “Democracy in India is only a top-dressing on an Indian soil which is essentially undemocratic.”
Our 19th-century understanding of representative democracy assumed that periodic elections were enough to ensure accountability. In practice, political parties in power have learned to use state machinery for partisan interests, insulated from transparency and public scrutiny. Bureaucracy, in turn, exercises subtle but pervasive power and indulges in corruption shielded by red tape. Politicians govern in the name of the people but rarely for the people or with the people. Instead of empowering citizens, this political class empowers itself, perpetuating a culture of prerogatives, privileges, and entitlements. Democracy thus is becoming ritualistic and formal, confined to periodic elections while real decisionmaking is monopolised by narrow groups.
Integral democracy, however, cannot remain confined to political institutions. Unless democracy extends to economic, social, and cultural relations, dismantling hierarchical structures, it remains incomplete. In a globalised world where all humanity must share the planet‘s cultural, material, and natural resources, our obligation is to promote such an inclusive democracy both at home and abroad. True foreign policy, therefore, should prioritise people-to-people relations, not leader-to-leader friendships with authoritarian regimes that violate human rights.
II. Why Representative Democracy is Failing Citizens ?
Beneath the spectacle of elections lies a quieter disillusionment. Younger generations are increasingly unwilling to accept passive lamentation. They are expressing discontent and resistance, refusing to allow further deterioration. Similar situations prevail across developing countries in South Asia — Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal, where youth-led movements have overthrown rulers but failed to transform regimes. India‘s sheer size and institutional complexity make such change difficult. Violent revolutions, as seen in the Naxalite movement, have failed to dislodge entrenched political and bureaucratic hierarchies. In a democracy, the solution cannot be revolutionary elimination of the dominant class. What is required is not a transfer of hard power but a transformation of power itself into soft power that operates through influence, social ethics, and democracy in all human relations. Gandhiji had trained Indians to use righteous and non-violent means — non-cooperation, civil resistance, and self-governance — to challenge colonial authority. Those same principles must now guide citizens in resisting domestic authoritarianism. Citizens need not wait for permission from those in power to reclaim democratic control. The instruments already exist in the Constitution and in practical experiences across states.
III. Constitutional and Civic Tools for Citizen Power
1. Constitutional Foundations of Citizen Sovereignty: In India‘s constitutional architecture, the people are sovereign, not Parliament or the government. The Constitution is supreme, and it gives citizens ample scope for activism:
Article 19(1)(a) guarantees freedom of speech and expression — the foundation of participatory governance.
Article 19(1)(c) protects the right to form associations, enabling citizens to organize for collective action.
Articles 243 to 243-ZG institutionalize local selfgovernance through Panchayats and Municipalities, empowering citizens to plan and monitor development.
Articles 32 and 226 empower citizens to seek judicial remedies for violations of rights—essential tools for civic resistance. These provisions collectively form the constitutional basis for reclaiming citizen power.
2. Building a Culture of Direct Democracy: As Mahatma Gandhi wrote in Hind Swaraj, “Real swaraj will come, not by the acquisition of authority by a few, but by the acquisition of the capacity by all to resist authority when abused.” The path is difficult but the instruments are already in citizens‘ hands. Experiments in Kerala and Rajasthan have demonstrated that participatory governance is not only possible but effective. The critical question is no longer whether politicians will allow citizens to participate, but whether citizens themselves are willing to claim that right. Modern technology and communication make it possible to democratise participation beyond castebased political representation, toward professional, local, and civic representation. Democracy must evolve from a five-year ritual to a daily social practice.
A. At the Local Level: We want more democratic dcentralisation by more sincere implementation of the 73rd and 74th Amendments in letter and spirit, devolving not just functions, but funds and functionaries. Under the 74th Amendment, every municipality must constitute Ward Committees. Yet, in most cities, they exist only on paper. Delhi state‘s experiment with Sheila Dixit‘s Bhagidari system and Mohalla Sabhas of 2015–2017 offered a glimpse of what is possible. Despite local political resistance, it is demonstrated that urban governance can be democratised more and more easily. In Kerala, for instance, the People‘s Plan Campaign launched in 1996 empowered Gram Sabhas to decide and allocate up to 35% of the state plan funds on local priorities. According to Kerala‘s State Planning Board reports, over twenty lakh citizens participate in these assemblies annually. In tribal areas under the PESA Act (1996), the citizens have resisted exploitative mining projects and corruption by asserting their constitutional authority. In erstwhile AP-Telangana combined state, a G.O.no.57 issued in December 2010, formed Ward Committees with the registered civil societies of RWAs, seniors, youth and women and the representatives of the Area Sabhas and decide about 20% of the resources allowed for maintenance.
B. State and National Level:
1. Institutionalising Accountability by Strengthening RTI, Social Audits, and Citizens’ Charters: Grassroots activists like Aruna Roy and Nikhil Dey (MKSS) showed how social audits exposed ―ghost workers‖ and inflated bills in public works. Their campaign led to the Right to Information Act, 2005, empowering ordinary citizens to expose corruption—from ration shops in Delhi to road projects in Bihar. In Andhra Pradesh, citizen-led audits under NREGA uncovered over ₹1,200 crore worth of irregularities. In Bengaluru, groups like Namma Bengaluru Foundation and Janaagraha pioneered ―Ward Quality Scorecards‖ for civic monitoring. Such initiatives prove that transparency reforms can scale nationwide—if institutionalized. All departments should be mandated to conduct social audits and adopt Citizens‘ Charters. The latter, promised since 1971, should be made justiciable, allowing citizens to claim compensation for administrative failures.
2. Digital Accountability: Social audits must evolve into Digital Accountability Platforms, realtime dashboards, open data portals, and grievance systems in regional languages. Civil society and citizens should be free to conduct independent audits and disseminate findings through traditional and social media.
C. Peoples Initiatives to Legislate: Citizens can influence legislation directly by Referendum in some countries and indirectly through petitions, public consultations in England, Italy and Philippines. The UK Parliament‘s e-petitions system allows people to propose issues for debate, if a petition gains one lakh signatures, it is considered for discussion in Parliament. In Switzerland, citizens can propose constitutional amendments through a popular initiative.
D. Right to Recall: In several countries like several states in the USA, Japan, Germany, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Latvia their constitutions allow the Recall i.e., the electorate can remove an elected official before the end of the term, if her or his behaviour is not satisfactory at local or even at national level. In a few countries the entire legislative body can be recalled.
E. Participatory Budgeting: At present, diverting the public expenditure in a way that keeps the ruling party popular is the main problem. Therefore, influencing the decisions concerning how public money is spent is the most direct form of democracy. Kerala‘s Kudumbashree and participatory budgeting in Pune and Bengaluru show that when citizens decide spending priorities, funds are better utilized and corruption declines. In Pune, over 10,000 citizens submitted local project proposals in 2019, with higher completion and satisfaction rates. Such models should become universal, especially in municipalities where opacity breeds corruption.
F. Civil Society Activism: Democracy, as Ambedkar once said, ― is not merely a form of government, it is a mode of associated living.
1. Social Media should be promoted as a part of the fundamental right under Article 19(1)(c) and it is a new tool to promote democracy. It should be protected against the onslaught by anybody. It should evolve out of its fake and abuse use by selfregulation.
2. Social Responsibility: Since we are living together as neighbours, we should promote social concern in all matters as a matter of attitude of mind. Just as we are expecting the expression of Corporate Social Responsibity (CSR) from the enterprises, similarly, we have to persuade the persons in authority, the political and administrative persons to show Social Responsibility while doing their duties.
3. A person in difficulty should not depend upon the generosity of the politicians and their welfare schemes, but get support from a System of Mutual Social Security and Insurance and social solidarity. To start with, every profession and every enterprise can constitute their own Social Security network and integrate itself into a wider system.
G. Judiciary as a Guardian of Participatory Democracy: When institutions fail, citizens can turn to the courts. Public Interest Litigation (PIL) — pioneered in the late 1970s — remains a vital tool. PILs have shaped policies on environment, food security, and transparency. Civil groups like Association for Democratic Rights in New Delhi and Forum for Good Governance in Hyderabad have exposed official misconduct and compelled governments to act.
H. Civic Education and Democratic Literacy: Democratic empowerment requires knowledge. Fundamental and constitutional rights should be taught in schools and community institutions by the civil societies. Court and tribunal proceedings should be widely broadcast to nurture transparency and civic engagement.
I. Digital Democracy, The Next Frontier: Platforms like MyGov.in initiated the idea of citizen consultation. Yet, real empowerment needs co-decision making, not token consultation. Independent initiatives like Change.org India, CivicDataLab, and Let Me Breathe demonstrate how digital platforms can mobilize petitions, open data, and environmental campaigns. Municipalities could adopt open dashboards showing budgets, tenders, and performance metrics — enabling realtime citizen audits. Blockchain-based audits, AI-driven grievance tracking, and even mobile-based elections can make governance more transparent and participatory than ever before.
IV. The Way Forward Towards Integral and Participatory Democracy: India‘s democracy must move from form to substance, from representation to participation. The task ahead is not to overthrow the political class but to overpower its dominance through civic awakening and institutional transformation. Integral democracy envisions democracy as a living system that integrates political, social, economic, and cultural dimensions. It demands the dismantling of social hierarchies and power monopolies that perpetuate dependency. It promotes governance as a shared public responsibility rooted in ethics, cooperation, and compassion. Citizens must stop seeing themselves as subjects of welfare schemes and become co-creators of governance. Political leaders must learn to share, not hoard power. Civil society, local bodies, and digital platforms must together reconstruct the architecture of public accountability. Many of the initiatives proposed above, can be taken by the activists suo motu, without being authorised and without being written in the legal texts.
In the end, as Gandhi said in Hind Swaraj: "Real swaraj will come, not by the acquisition of authority by a few, but by the acquisition of the capacity by all to resist authority when abused." Democracy, then, becomes not a system of rule, but a culture of self-rule. To overpower the political class, citizens need not seize control, they must transform the very nature of power. When citizens deliberate, decide, and monitor governance daily; when institutions are open and accountable; when participation becomes a civic habit rather than a periodic act, democracy will finally return to its rightful owners: the people themselves.
Dr Rao VBJ Chelikani
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