Ask any Indian above the age of 21 if they are open to a dictatorship, and you will find enthusiastic approval from the majority. It’s so badly managed, that people practically lament the lack of a dictator. The appalling lack of civic sense and political will to take positive steps in the right direction makes many an Indian yearn for an iron fist. Some people call Narendra Modi a dictator. That man can’t even pass a single law without being mogged by his “allies”. Not to forget the born-again opposition who have the momentum to topple him in a few years.
Self-rule is a new thing for us. This country has only seen governance by invaders, occupiers, feudal lords, opportunists and idealists for nearly a millennium. When our nation was formed in 1947, we didn’t know for how long it would last. No seriously. A three-thousand-year-old civilization had lost its eastern and western provinces in mere months. Most people had nothing in common other than the majority religion and long-gone ancestors. We somehow agreed upon a constitution in 1950 and it has been successful in keeping us united till now.
Segregation isn’t a North American exclusive. It is a way of life even today in India. I remember visiting a friend’s place near Gurugram (then Gurgaon) where he told me – “This is where my family lives. It’s a backward caste locality. This is where we have been staying for at least a century. Behind it, you will see a locality for Harijans. It’s not in good shape. Earlier there were mud huts, but now they have concrete houses!”. Even today, India continues to be a country with a million identities. We are hyper-specific about who we are. Concrete may have replaced dung, but rigid social identities permeate through centuries.
I was once chatting with a cab driver who told me he was visiting his hometown in Uttar Pradesh to vote. I was pleasantly surprised and asked him what made him so dedicated to his democratic responsibilities. “Our guy must win. The opposition leader represents the lower caste. We can’t let him win. If that comes to pass, their community will dominate us! I am going to do my part.”. My urban bubble burst with the power of a thousand suns. I realised that day, I live a lie. Rural India, which is the majority, is still extremely attached to its caste-based roots and ways of life.
Access to the world’s knowledge in the palm of our hands hasn’t led to a unified sense of who we are but has deepened our societal fault lines. Today, WhatsApp has lakhs of groups dedicated to caste and sub-caste identities. People get married, referred for jobs and even elected with a lot of help from these groups. The BJP invented the playbook of using WhatsApp to win elections but was ironically beaten at their own game in 2024. Fake news and mischievous interpretations of their proposed policies spread like wildfire on these groups, leading to one of the most shocking election results in two decades.
A dictator can only arise if he is representing a group of people with a common identity or belief system. The Soviet Union had many identities, but their common belief was a communist society that would propel their civilization forward. The Chinese are a homogenous society of Han Chinese civilians that date their lineage back to a thousand years. Americans believed in the Consitution and the American dream with a hint of Christianity. They are losing that glue now and we can see the results. France has French as a language. What does India have? Lee Kuan Yew once remarked that if India’s Prime Minister gave a speech in Delhi, half the country wouldn’t understand a word of what he was saying.
Our multi-dimensional hyper-diversity is something that looks romantic on paper but is a huge drain on our attempt to unify under a common umbrella. Democracy may not work in India but it suits us. It is that one system where everyone feels they have a say or at least a protest. Without this, this nation of a million identities would cease to exist in its current format. If India does have a dictator, the question would be, who would he be? I am not going to write “she” even for the sake of argument.
What state would he represent? Would he speak all 22 official languages? What would be his caste? Will he be pro-farmer or pro-enterprise? What will he do when a group is unhappy with him? Even worse, what if he is unhappy with them!? What if some part or parts want to secede? Our democracy allows everyone to get a say and ensure we go three steps forward and two steps back. This is why we are never going to overtake China without war or an act of God. Our only binding force as of now, is the right to vote. Maybe in the coming decades, we will find something more durable as a common glue.
But for now, we must deal with strikes, protests and backwards-looking policies just to ensure our nation stays united. It sounds depressing because it is. The only light at the end of the tunnel is that we will prosper substantially in the coming decades. We may be rich until this level of population is curbed by the 2070s based on our TFR. Until then, it will be a revolving door of straitjacketed leadership that will help us trudge along to a brighter future. Enjoy the ride. Hey, at least we can call them names online!
Pol Ke Bol! 