1.4 Pillars of Democracy
Ice Breakers
1) Choose the correct alternative.
(i) ‘Government of the people, by the people and for the people, shall not perish from the earth’. This famous statement is made by –
(a) Mahatma Gandhi
(c) Abraham Lincoln
(b) Nelson Mandela
(d) Dalai Lama
Answer: Abraham Lincoln
(ii) A system where the government is elected and ruled by people is called-
(a) Bureaucracy
(b) Aristocracy
(c) Democracy
(d) Autocracy
Answer: Democracy
(iii) A democratic country is governed by, its-
(a) Military
(b) Police
(c) Politicians
(d) Constitution
Answer: Constitution
Answer
2) Match the following.
Answer:
3) Explain
Pillars form a support for concrete buildings. Metaphorically speaking a strong nation too depends on strong pillars. Explain the pillars of a democratic nation. Make a list of obstacles that are a threat to the progress of a nation.
Answer:
The pillars of democracy are liberty, equality and fraternity. Liberty, equality and fraternity lead to an ideal nation. These three concepts build a strong, supportive, caring and united nation. Here people work for the well-being of all. They love and respect other persons. There is no separation in respect of social life. So, such nation is an ideal nation. They build the foundation of a strong nation.
Obstacles that are a threat to the progress of a nation.
1) Communalism
2) Casteism
3) Excessive pride for Language
4) Regionalism
5) Economic Differences
6) Terrorism
7) Racism
8) Large growing population
9) Gender inequality
10) Corruption
11) A lack of capital investment
12) A crushing level of debt
13) Poor development of trade and commerce
14) Illiteracy
15) inadequate technology
16) Unemployment
Writer: Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar
He was born on 14th April 1891 in the town and military cantonment of Mhow (now Dr. Ambedkar Nagar) in Madhya Pradesh. He got his degree from Elphinston College, Mumbai. He subsequently obtained the doctorate from Columbia University, USA and London School of Economics. He was also assigned the big and challenging task of framing the ‘Constitution of India’ in the capacity of Chairman of the Drafting Committee. He was awarded the ‘Bharat Ratna’ posthumously for his dedication and commitment for the welfare of our country. He wrote various thought-provoking books.
About the topic: Pillars of Democracy
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar has laid emphasis on the values of liberty, equality and fraternity. According to him, these principles will make India a strong nation. These principles make our life livable.
He opines that hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship and the collapse of a nation. He shows the threats of such hero worship and asks the readers to keep away from such thinking.
Important points:
According to Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, for maintaining democracy not in form but in fact it needs to do the following things.
1) To hold fast to constitutional methods for achieving our social and economic objectives.
2) Do not use any unconstitutional methods as these methods create the Grammar of Anarchy leading liberty at stake.
3) One should not lay liberties at the feet of even a great man. The man may have sacrificed for the nation, but it is not justified one lay liberty at his feet.
4) One should not trust the man with powers which enable him to subvert the institutions. It is dangerous to liberty of the people.
5) There is nothing wrong in being grateful to great men but there are limits to that gratefulness. It is not good for democracy; it the limits are exceeded.
6) In this concern, Irish patriot Danniel O’Connel says that No man can be grateful at the cost of his honour, not woman can be grateful at the cost of her chastity and no nation can be grateful at the cost of liberty.
7) Here Dr. Ambedkar has given an example of Bhakti. It subtly fits to the gratefulness theory in India. Bhakti or hero-worship plays diametrically opposite roles in Indian religion and Indian politics.
8) Dr.Ambedkar says ‘on the 26th of January 1950, we are going to enter into a life of contradictions. The Indian people will get political right of equality. But they are away from equality in social and economic life. In politics, the principle is one man one vote and one vote one value. But the same principle is not applied in social and political life of India.
9) Dr. Ambedkar says, ‘If we continue to deny one man one value i.e. equality in our social and economic life, we are putting our democracy in peril’
10) Fraternity means a sense of common brotherhood of all Indians. According to Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, it is not easy to achieve fraternity in Indian social life.
11) Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar gives example in the words of Jame Bryce. ‘In American Protestant Epicopal church, at its triennial convention a prayer for all the people was said. The words ran as “O Lord bless our nation” But the objections were raised by the people of a religious community and later on the words in the prayer was changed as ‘O Lord, bless these United States’.
12) USA has no caste problem still the people did not accept as they were a nation. In India there are so many castes. Castes are anti-national. They bring about separation in social life. Castes are antinational as they generate jealousy and antipathy between common people.
13) According to Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, in believing that we are a nation, we are doing a great mistake. People divided into several thousands of castes can’t be a nation.
CONCLUSION:
Fraternity can be a fact only when there is a nation. Without fraternity, equality and liberty will be no deeper than coats of paints.
Chapter 1.4 Pillars of Democracy
Discuss with your partner and choose the correct alternative.
‘Government of the people, by the people and for the people, shall not perish from the earth’. This famous statement is made by - ______________________.
Solution
Mahatma Gandhi
Nelson Mandela
Abraham Lincoln
Dalai Lama
A system where the government is elected and ruled by people is called - ________________.
Solution
Bureaucracy
Aristocracy
Democracy
Autocracy
A democratic country is governed by, its - __________________.
Solution
Military
Police
Politicians
Constitution
The trinity of democracy comprises three principles. Complete the web to show the trinity of democracy.
Solution
Match the following.
Solution
Pillars form support for concrete buildings. Metaphorically speaking a strong nation too depends on strong pillars. Discuss with your partner and explain the pillars of a democratic nation. Make a list of obstacles that are a threat to the progress of a nation.
Solution
The Legislature, the executive, the judiciary, and the press are the 4 important pillars of a democratic nation.
Legislature
The legislature is an indispensable part of a democratic government that formulates the laws for a country through representatives elected by voting. Legislature includes the parliament and the state assemblies. When people‟s representatives strongly deliberate the laws in a legislature, democracy emerges victorious.
Executive
The president, the prime minister, his cabinet, and bureaucrats form the executive, the second pillar of democracy. These offices in a democracy carry out the implementation of policies and laws for the welfare of the people. A strong executive force is necessary for the smooth functioning of a democracy.
Judiciary
The judiciary looks after the application of law and constitution and gives impartial judgments in matters of state and individuals. The pillar of the judiciary plays a vital role in maintaining law and order and imparting justice in a democracy.
Press
The press communicates issues of public importance to the masses. Press is yet another important pillar of democracy that keeps a check on the government and ultimately serves the public interest. Listed below are some of the obstacles that are a threat to the progress of a nation:
i. unemployment
ii. illiteracy
iii. population growth
iv. inflation
v. rising inequality
vi. corruption
vii. poverty
viii. red-tapism
ix. terrorism
x. black money
xi. interstate disharmony
Form groups and use the following topic for discussion. Take the help of your college library and your teacher.
Need for democracy
Solution
Need for democracy
Democracy is a fair way to put people into power.
Freedom granted to individuals to live a life of their choice.
Criticism from opposition to the government in power
Citizen's right to question every action of a democratic government.
Disadvantages of other forms of government.
Citizens of other countries suffering at the hands of supreme authority.
Features of the Constitution of India
Solution
Features of the constitution of India
Drafting of the constitution of India
Its structure – Parts, schedules, and appendices
Sections pertaining to the legislature, government, and judiciary
flexibility and scope for amendments.
Freedom of speech
Solution
Freedom of speech
The meaning and what it stands for
The necessity of freedom of speech
How people can suffer if freedom of speech is denied
Adverse consequences of misuse of freedom of speech.
Dictatorship Vs Democracy
Solution
Dictatorship Vs Democracy
explanation of the two terms
the way two governments function
examples of countries following each of the two systems
advantages of democracy over dictatorship
Situations that justify the need for dictatorship.
Qualities of an ideal politician
Solution
Qualities of an ideal politician
clean track record
a technically skilled and good orator
should be delivering on his promises
must be honest and have integrity
strive towards the public interest.
Equality before law
Solution
Equality before law
all citizens are equal before the law
no discrimination based on race, religion, gender, caste, and place of birth.
why is it necessary in a democracy
examples from the past that portray equality before the law.
State whether the following statement is true or false. Correct the false statement.
There is nothing wrong with being grateful to great men.
Solution
True
False
Hero-worship leads to dictatorship.
Solution
Options
True
False
Hero-worship leads to dictatorship - False.
Explanation:
Hero-worship in 'politics' leads to dictatorship.
Liberty cannot be divorced from equality.
Solution
True
False
One man one vote and one vote one value.
Solution
True
False
Fraternity means common sense.
Solution
Options
True
False
Fraternity means common sense - False.
Explanation:
Fraternity means a sense of common brotherhood.
In his speech, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar has expressed his deep concern over the absence of two things in the then Indian society. Discuss with your partner and complete the web.
Solution
Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar has cited the quotes by John Stuart Mill and Daniel O’Connel. Go through the lesson and write down 4 to 5 lines for each of them.
Solution
John Stuart Mill
In the extract, John Stuart Mill has been quoted as “(not) to lay their liberties at the feet of even a great man, or to trust him with powers which enable him to subvert their institutions.”
This is a word of caution for the people who trust in democracy.
It is but natural to get overwhelmed by the achievements of a great man.
At the same time, it is not wise enough to entrust him with all the powers that he can possibly misuse which can eventually cause damage to the institution.
Daniel O'Connell
In the same extract, Daniel O'Connel has been quoted as 'No man can be grateful at the cost of his honour, no woman can be grateful at the cost of her chastity and no nation can be grateful at the cost of its liberty.'
Daniels talks about the limitations of being grateful to great men.
Similar to how a man and a woman need to safeguard their honour and chastity respectively while being grateful, a nation must safeguard its liberty.
In short, the quote emphasizes the importance of liberty when compared to gratefulness.
Discuss with your partner and make a list of steps that you feel are essential to unite the people of different castes, races, religions, and languages in India.
Solution
Students do it Yourself.
Write your views/opinions in brief on the following topic.
We must always cast our votes.
Solution
Voting is every citizen's right in a democracy and it should be exercised religiously. Voting makes sure the right candidates get elected and run our government. We cannot blame the non-performance of a government if we do not turn out to vote. Not casting a vote is equivalent to not having faith in democracy.
Liberty, equality, and fraternity lead to an ideal nation.
Solution
Liberty, equality, and fraternity are considered the trinity of democracy. Liberty gives impetus for progress, equality ensures equal opportunities, and contentment and fraternity provide a healthy atmosphere and solidarity in times of distress. These three essentials go hand in hand in an ideal nation.
Steps to be taken to eradicate inequality.
Solution
The preliminary steps to eradicate inequality are imparting education and empowering individuals. The steps to eradicate economic inequality would include employment generation and redistribution of wealth. This can be achieved by a progressive collection of taxes. Social inequality needs to be addressed through social awareness. Strict laws should be formulated and implemented against those who indulge in discrimination.
Role of youth in creating social awareness.
Solution
The youth are the future of a nation. Their contemporary views matter the most and should reach the masses at large. They are an energetic lot and have the ability to execute changes. They know what is in their best interest, and with technology by their side, the youth has all the avenues necessary to create social awareness.
Let’s use the Thesaurus.
Along with your partner, go to the library or search the internet for a standard Thesaurus to complete the following table. One is done for you.
Solution
Homograph: Homograph is a word spelled and pronounced like another word but with a different meaning.
For example: the word ‘fast’ has two meanings. The different meanings are -
fast- hold firmly
fast- to abstain from food
fast- opposite of slow.
Go through the text again and make a list of meanings of all the homographs that are found in the text. Also, make a list of such words that you know, heard, or read somewhere.
Solution
The following homographs can be found in the extract:
form – Visible shape of a thing
form – a document with information
left – relating to side
left – Past tense of leave
deal – Commercial activity or trading
deal – Distributing cards in order
second – Numerically following the first
second – unit for measuring time
feet – The base of legs
feet – unit for measuring length
even – flat or smooth
even – emphasize with surprise
even – any number divisible by 2 without leaving a remainder
part – some but not the whole of anything
part – move away from each other
accent, bat, grave, leave, letter, record, just, park, the wound are some other homographs that we commonly hear.
Go through the statement taken from the text – ‘The social democracy means a way of life which recognises liberty, equality, and fraternity’.
The underlined part of the statement provides us some facts/information about social democracy. The remaining part of the sentence which is not underlined can be converted into a wh-question.
What does social democracy mean?
Now go through the underlined part of the statement/sentence given below and change them into question by using the appropriate Wh-form.
In Politics, we will be recognizing the principle of ‘one man one vote’ and ‘one vote one value’.
Solution
Which principle will we be recognising in Politics?
The politically minded Indians preferred the expression ‘the Indian nation’.
Solution
Which expression was preferred by the politically-minded Indians?
Fraternity means a sense of common brotherhood of all Indians.
Solution
What does fraternity mean?
Make a list of various prepositions, write their definition, and make sentences of your own. Here are some prepositions that will definitely be brainstorming for you.
in, into, inside
on, onto, above, over
beside, besides
for, from, since
to, towards
down, below, under, beneath, underneath
between, among, amongst (And the list goes on _____)
Solution
i. Rama stood first in the class.
ii. Jay somehow crawled into the elevator.
iii. Steve went inside the cave.
iv. The matchstick was lying on the shelf.
v. Sneha somehow climbed onto the roof.
vi. Shreyas placed the lamp above the table.
vii. The Jumbo-jet flew over the city.
viii. The teacher sat beside Arya to explain the solution to the problem.
ix. Besides selling bread, the bakery also sold cakes.
x. Shreyas played for his home team.
xi. Jiya earned her degree from a reputed college.
xii. Ravi knew Jay's medical condition since a long time.
xiii. The driver wanted to drink water.
xiv. The horse went towards the lake.
xv. The house went down like a pack of cards.
xvi. Sanjay‟s name was right below Sanjana‟s name.
xvii. Thankfully there was nobody under the car shed.
xviii. The layer of rock usually lies beneath the layer of soil.
xix. Krishna always forgets his earphones underneath the blanket.
xx. The battle between the arch-rivals was a fierce one.
xxi. Rajas preferred to stay among his community members.
xxii. The elephant is the largest amongst all land animals.
How to prepare a speech.
With the help of the steps given above write a speech on the following topic - Duties of an ideal citizen.
Solution
Speech: Duties of an ideal citizen.
A citizen is a person who lives in a state and is governed by its laws in all matters. An ideal citizen is an asset to a nation. Countries are not good or bad but their citizens make them so. Smugglers, law breakers and people of bad character are also citizens of a country but they cannot be called ideal citizens.
An ideal citizen is every inch a patriot. Citizenship secures for the people a sense of security for their life and property. In a democratic country like India, a citizen enjoys the right of voting in elections to public bodies. He can himself stand as a candidate for election to the municipal committee of his town and legislative bodies of his country. He can even stand for the office of the president of the country.
A citizen enjoys several other advantages. It is the duty of the state to provide him with employment as far as possible.
A citizen enjoys several facilities. The state provides him with essential services such as transport, right of voting, electricity, hospitals and schools for the education of his children.
Modern states are welfare states. They are supposed to look after the welfare of the citizens. A citizen can stand up and fight for certain rights.
On the other hand, a citizen has to carry out certain duties and responsibilities. He is expected to obey the laws of his country. He must be loyal to the state. He or she must gladly offer his or her services to the state. In time of war or a national emergency, a citizen should serve the country in any capacity he is called upon to serve.
Every citizen must support the police and the administration in general in the maintenance of peace. It is also the duty of all citizens to desist from creating disorder by communal riots.
An ideal citizen tries to protect national property. He makes a right use of the facilities provided to him. He tries to maintain communal harmony in the country. He has a secular outlook. He is tolerant towards all faiths. He believes in the principle of peaceful co-existence. ‘Live and let live’ is the guiding principle of his life. He is honest and fair in his dealings. He has a helpful attitude towards his fellow human beings. He refuses to be tempted into corruption or dishonesty. His life is an open book in honesty, diligence and amiability.
It is the duty of every citizen to be ready to offer his services for public duties. It is the fundamental duty of a citizen to record his vote. A citizen is also expected to take an active part in public affairs. Another duty of a citizen is to pay taxes honestly. If he evades these, the government has the right to realize the taxes by force. An ideal citizen is ideal in his speech, conduct and writing. He is always ready to lay down his life for the sake of his country. His country is a motherland to him and he loves her from the core of his heart.
The greatness of a country depends not on her material resources, but on her men and women. A nation is great if her citizens are great. A poet has rightly said:
“Not gold, but only men,
Can make a nation strong and great;
With the help of the steps given above write speech on the following topic - Equality: A blessing.
Solution
Equality: A blessing
A very good evening to all the attendees! I, Ms. ______ would be speaking on the topic „Equality – A Blessing ‟.
We may have different religions, languages, and skin-colour, but we all belong to just one race – the human race; and as humans, we are all equal. What is equality? Equality is when men and women are paid equally? No! It is when the remuneration depends on the role and not the gender. Is it when equal employment opportunities are created? No! It is when opportunities match the merit. Equality and inequality are both man-made. Favouring someone because they belong to a certain caste or religion not only makes us biased but also affects the one who loses an opportunity because of our biases. Inequality in the name of equal opportunities is a curse for humanity. The sooner the society understands this, the better for humanity. Equality and fairness start from one person‟s mind and have a snowballing effect. Thank you.
With the help of the steps given above write a speech on the following topic - Merits of democracy.
Solution
Do it Yourself.
With the help of the steps given above write a speech on the following topic - Advantages of education.
Solution
Do it Yourself.
With the help of the steps given above write a speech on the following topic - Unity in Diversity.
Solution
Do it Yourself.
There are many career opportunities that can be availed of by a graduate. Discuss and make a list of various opportunities available in the legal field, economics, management, commerce, administration, etc.
Solution
Indian graduates turn eligible to appear for civil services examinations and can become officers with the Indian administrative service, police service, forest service, and revenue service.
Visit your college library or search the internet for at least five speeches of different renowned personalities of the world. Write the speeches in your notebook and submit them to your teacher.
Solution
Winston Churchill: War Speech
In this solemn hour, it is a consolation to recall and to dwell upon our repeated efforts for peace. All have been ill-starred, but all have been faithful and sincere. This is of the highest moral value--and not only moral value, but practical value--at the present time, because the wholehearted concurrence of scores of millions of men and women, whose co-operation is indispensable and whose comradeship and brotherhood are indispensable, is the only foundation upon which the trial and tribulation of modern war can be endured and surmounted. This moral conviction alone affords that ever-fresh resilience which renews the strength and energy of people in long, doubtful, and dark days. Outside, the storms of war may blow and the lands may be lashed with the fury of its gales, but in our own hearts this Sunday morning there is peace. Our hands may be active, but our consciences are at rest.
We must not underrate the gravity of the task which lies before us or the temerity of the ordeal, to which we shall not be found unequal. We must expect many disappointments, and many unpleasant surprises, but we may be sure that the task which we have freely accepted is one not beyond the compass and the strength of the British Empire and the French Republic. The Prime Minister said it was a sad day, and that is indeed true, but at the present time there is another note which may be present, and that is a feeling of thankfulness that, if these great trials were to come upon our Island, there is a generation of Britons here now ready to prove itself not unworthy of the days of yore and not unworthy of those great men, the fathers of our land, who laid the foundations of our laws and shaped the greatness of our country.
This is not a question of fighting for Danzig or fighting for Poland. We are fighting to save the whole world from the pestilence of Nazi tyranny and in defense of all that is most sacred to man. This is no war of domination or imperial aggrandizement or material gain; no war to shut any country out of its sunlight and means of progress. It is a war, viewed in its inherent quality, to establish, on impregnable rocks, the rights of the individual, and it is a war to establish and revive the stature of a man. Perhaps it might seem a paradox that a war undertaken in the name of liberty and right should require, as a necessary part of its processes, the surrender for the time being of so many of the dearly valued liberties and rights. In these last few days, the House of Commons has been voting dozens of Bills which hand over to the executive our most dearly valued traditional liberties. We are sure that these liberties will be in hands which will not abuse them, which will use them for no class or party interests, which will cherish and guard them, and we look forward to the day, surely and confidently we look forward to the day, when our liberties and rights will be restored to us, and when we shall be able to share them with the peoples to whom such blessings are unknown.
Winston Churchill
September 3, 1939
House of Commons
Jawaharlal Nehru Speech on the birth of independent India
Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history when we step out from the old to the new when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.
At the dawn of history, India started on her unending quest, and trackless centuries are filled with her striving and the grandeur of her successes and her failures. Through good and ill fortune alike she has never lost sight of that quest or forgotten the ideals which gave her strength. We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future?
Freedom and power bring responsibility. That responsibility rests upon this Assembly, a sovereign body representing the sovereign people of India. Before the birth of freedom, we have endured all the pains of labour and our hearts are heavy with the memory of this sorrow. Some of those pains continue even now. Nevertheless, the past is over and it is the future that beckons to us now.
That future is not one of ease or resting but of incessant striving so that we might fulfill the pledges we have so often taken and the one we shall take today. The service of India means the service of the millions who suffer. It means the ending of poverty and ignorance and disease and inequality of opportunity. The ambition of the greatest man of our generation has been to wipe every tear from every eye. That may be beyond us but as long as there are tears and suffering, so long our work will not be over.
And so we have to labor and to work and work hard to give reality to our dreams. Those dreams are for India, but they are also for the world, for all the nations and peoples are too closely knit together today for any one of them to imagine that it can live apart. Peace has been said to be indivisible, so is freedom, so is prosperity now, and so also is a disaster in this one world that can no longer be split into isolated fragments.
To the people of India, whose representatives we are, we make an appeal to join us with faith and confidence in this great adventure. This is no time for petty and destructive criticism, no time for ill will, or blaming others. We have to build the noble mansion of free India where all her children may dwell.
I beg to move, Sir.
“That it be resolved that :
(1) After the last stroke of midnight, all members of the Constituent Assembly present on this occasion do take the following pledge:
At this solemn moment when the people of India, through suffering and sacrifice, have secured freedom, I, ……….., a member of the Constituent Assembly of India, do dedicate myself in all humility to the service of India and her people to the end that this ancient land attains her rightful place in the world and make her full and willing contribution to the promotion of world peace and the welfare of mankind.
(2) Members who are not present on this occasion do take the pledge (with such verbal changes at the President may prescribe) at the time they next attend a session of the Assembly.”
Martin Luther King acceptance Speech
"I must ask why this prize is awarded to a movement which is beleaguered and committed to the unrelenting struggle, and to a movement which has not yet won the very peace and brotherhood which is the essence of the Nobel Prize," King said. "After contemplation, I conclude that this award, which I receive on behalf of that movement, is a profound recognition that nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time: the need for man to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to violence and oppression."
At the end of his speech, he called peace "more precious than diamonds or silver or gold."
Nelson Mandela Speech
I am turning 86 in a few week's time and that is a longer life than most people are granted. I have the added blessing of being in very good health, at least according to my doctors. I am confident that nobody present here today will accuse me of selfishness if I ask to spend time, while I am still in good health, with my family, my friends, and also with myself.
One of the things that made me long to be back in prison was that I had so little opportunity for reading, thinking, and quiet reflection after my release. I intend, amongst other things, to give myself much more opportunity for such reading and reflection. And of course, there are those memoirs about the presidential years that now really need my urgent attention.
When I told one of my advisors a few months ago that I wanted to retire he growled at me: "you are retired." If that is really the case then I should say I now announce that I am retiring from retirement.
I do not intend to hide away totally from the public, but henceforth I want to be in the position of calling you to ask whether I would be welcome, rather than being called upon to do things and participate in events. The appeal, therefore, is: don’t call me, I’ll call you.
