Democracy

Introduction

A good citizen actively organizes with other people to address causes of injustice and suffering. A good citizen understands the complexities of social, political, and economic issues and sees how they are interrelated and mutually reinforcing. A good citizen questions accepted definitions of problems. Good citizens are activists who are empowered to focus on things that they care about in their own lives and who can either identify or build the potential avenues needed to truly change them.

Just as English education is not about grammar — except as a vehicle for clarity in writing and thought — democracy education is not solely about how a bill becomes a law; it is also about how students can understand that process and then put it into action to change the world around them. In the same way that far too many English classes focus on diagrams of sentences, too many government classes focus solely on diagrams showing the classic s e p a ration of powers, the branches of government, and h ow a bill becomes a law. Of course, it is important to understand how the mechanisms of our democracy work. When the analysis stops there, we become deeply concerned. Students will only be truly empowered by their understandings of democracy when they can move beyond the diagrams and apply their knowledge in the real world of political action and social change.

It is tempting to believe that teachers, working together with common purpose, can turn students into empowered and active citizens. However, we know that it is not possible for teachers and students to learn, understand, focus, organize, and then right wrongs. When society tells teachers that it is our responsibility to pursue these lofty goals with our students, we are all missing the larger picture. Society must stop pinning its hopes and aspirations for social change primarily on schools. Schools alone have never been and will never be able to cure the broader ills of the social, political, and economic system. Society must acknowledge that real opportunities do not exist for all. Then we must decide collectively that all of us will work to build those opportunities. Until we see increased interest, accompanying public dialogue, massive reorientation of values and priorities, and a resultant groundswell of public action, we will not be particularly hopeful that changes in the distribution of opportunities at all levels will occur.

Objectives

• Fostering in the nation’s young the skills, dispositions, and knowledge necessary for effective participation in a social and political democracy;

• Ensuring that the young have access to those understandings and skills required for satisfying and responsible lives;

• Young people need to be taught to make democracy work, to engage civically, socially, and politically.
• To encourage and challenge society to start functioning as a true democracy.
• To develop in students an understanding of the differences in values, interests, priorities, and opinions that exist in a diverse society such as ours. The differences that exist are normal in a democracy and should be respected, not regretted.
• To develop in students familiarity with different methods used in settling conflicts among values, interests, priorities, and opinions in our democracy.
• To develop in students an awareness that differences among people and deliberation, compromise, and voting exist not only in contemporary political life.

Concept Map

Meaning of Democracy

Objectives :

1. To understand the different meanings attached to the word democracy
2. To come up with one's own definition of democracy
3. To know the different definitions of democracy given by different political scientists.
4. To understand how history of democracy has developed

Democracy has become a way of life. It is not just about documents or governments, yet it is about the things people do every day that contribute to society and make it a better place to live. People's day-to-day actions that create the democratic way of life. In true democratic fashion, it invites people to join the discussion and share their own experiences as citizens. Democracy is a form of government in which the rulers are elected by the people. But this does not mean that every government that holds an election is democratic.

Democracy is by far the most challenging form of government- both for politicians and for the people. The term democracy comes from the Greek language and means "rule by the (simple) people". It basically means that the rulers are elected by the people.

If you look into newspapers everyday, you will find a lot of articles about democracy. Do they all explain it in the same manner? What are the different ways in which democracy is explained and represented?

ಚಟುವಟಿಕೆ

ದಿನಪತ್ರಿಕೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿನ ಲೇಖನ ಓದಿ ಪ್ರಾಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ಅರ್ಥವನ್ನು ಕಂಡುಕೊಳ್ಳುವುದು

ಉದ್ದೇಶ - ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ಅರ್ಥ ಮತ್ತು ವ್ಯಾಖಾನೆಯನ್ನು ಅರಿಯುವುದು

ಬೇಕಾಗುವ ಸಾಮಗ್ರಿಗಳು - ದಿನಪತ್ರಿಕೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿನ ವಿವಿಧ ಲೇಖನಗಳು ( ಹಕ್ಕು ಸಂಬಂಧ ಹೋರಾಟಾ, ಹಕ್ಕು , ಶೋಷಣೆ, ಹೀಗೆ ಹಲವು ಲೇಖನಗಳು )

ಸೂಚನೆ - ಕೆಲವು ಸೂಕ್ತ ಲೇಖನಗಳನ್ನು ಶಿಕ್ಷರೇ ಆಯ್ದು ತೆಗೆದಿಟ್ಟಿರುವುದು,

ವಿಧಾನ – ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಹಕ್ಕು ಸಂಬಂಧ ಹೋರಾಟ, ಹಕ್ಕು , ಶೋಷಣೆ, ಸಾಮಜಿಕ ಘರ್ಷಣೆ, ಹೀಗೆ ಹಲವು ಲೇಖನಗಳನ್ನು ಗುರು ಕತ್ತರಿಸಿ ಇಡಲು ಹೇಳುವುದು.

ಸೂಕ್ತವಾದ ದಿನದಂದು ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ತಾವು ಕೂಡಿಟ್ಟಿರುವ ಲೇಖನಗಳನ್ನು ತರಲು ಹೇಳುವುದು.

ಮಕ್ಕಳನ್ನು ಗುಂಪುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ವಿಂಗಡಿಸಿ ಚರ್ಚಿಸಲು ಹೇಳುವುದು

ಆಯ್ದ ಲೇಖನಗಳನ್ನು ತರಗತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಓದಿ ಅವುಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಒಟ್ತಾಗಿ ಚರ್ಚಿಸುವುದು

ಚರ್ಚಾ ವಿಷಯ - ಯಾವ ಸಂದರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ಪಾಲನೆಯಾಗಿದೆ.

ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವಕ್ಕೆ ಧಕ್ಕೆಯಾದ ಸಂದರ್ಭ, ಅಂಥ ಸಂದರ್ಭದಲ್ಲಿ ಸಾಮಾಜಿಕ ನ್ಯಾಯದ ಸ್ಥುತ್ಗತಿ, ಅದನ್ನು

ಕಲಿಕಾಂಶ -

Definitions of Democracy 1. U.S. President Abraham Lincoln(1809-1865) defined democracy as: «Government of the people, by the people, for the people»

History of Democracy

Democracy in ancient times

Around 2500 years ago in Ancient Greece, the people of the city-state of Athens developed a way of making decisions that was different from the autocratic ways of the past. An autocratic system of government is a type of government where one person or small group make all the decisions on behalf of the people of the state. Citizens of the state have no say in influencing decisions.

Ancient Greece

Athens was the first city state to allow ordinary citizens access to government offices and courts. In theory, all Athenian citizens were eligible to speak and vote in the Assembly which set the laws of the city-state. In reality, Athens was not a true democracy as women were not included nor were foreigners, slaves or freed slaves. Also, according to the rules of citizenship both parents must have been Athenian citizens for a person to qualify to take part in the Assembly. The democracy therefore, was only a very small minority of the people living in Athens. It was, however, the closest any country had come to establishing a democratic society at this time.

Democracy in the Middle Ages

The Middle Ages was a period of European history from the fall of the Roman Empire (476 AD) until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 AD. Although there was not a democracy directly in place during the Middle Ages, Christianity was widely followed and so many democratic ideas were understood and followed by many of the people. Christianity taught that all men were created equal. Another form of government, known as feudalism developed during this time. Feudalism stressed that all people had certain rights and developed a system of courts to defend these rights.

In medieval England, in 1215, King John had total control and his subjects had no freedom or say whatsoever. The Magna Carta took some of the king's power away and gave some rights and freedom to the people.

The American Revolution is an important event in history that marks a turning point in democracy. The first step was the creation of the Declaration of Independence, written by the American President, Thomas Jefferson in 1776. In this document many ideas were taken from two famous philosophers of the time, Jean Jacques Rousseau and John Locke, which outlined freedom and equality.

ಚಟುವಟಿಕೆ '-

ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ಇತಿಹಾಸವನ್ನು ಅರಿಯುವುದು

ಉದ್ದೇಶ - ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ನಕಾಶೆಯನ್ನು

ಬೇಕಾಗುವ ಸಾಮಗ್ರಿ - ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ಐತಿಹಾಸಿಕ ನಕಾಶೆಯನ್ನು ನೋಡಿ ಅದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಚರ್ಚಿಸುವುದು.

ಸೂಚನೆ - NCERT / ಬೇರೆಡೆ ಲಭ್ಯವಿರುವ ನಕಾಶೆಗಳನ್ನು ತಯಾರಿಡುವುದು.

ಇವುಗಳನ್ನು projector ಮೂಲಕ / ಪ್ರತಿಗಳನ್ನು ಹಂಚಬೇಕೋ ಇಂಬುದನ್ನು ಮೊದಲೇ ನಿರ್ಧಾರ ಮಾಡಿ ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಬೇಕದ ತಯಾರಿ ಮಾಡುವುದು .

ವಿಧಾನ – ಒಂದೊಂದಾಗಿ ನಾಕಾಶೆಗಳನ್ನು ಸೂಕ್ಷ್ಮವಾಗಿ ಗಮನಿಸಿ,

ಚರ್ಚಾವಿಷಯ - ಇತ್ತೀಚೆಗೆ ಪ್ರಜಾಪಭುತ್ವ ಪಡೆದುಕೊಂಡಂತಹ ರಾಷ್ತ್ರಗಳನ್ನು ಗುರುತಿಸುವುದು

ಆ ರಾಷ್ತ್ರಗಳು ಹೇಗೆ ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವವನ್ನು ಪಡೆದುಕೊಂಡವು ಎಂಬುದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಚರ್ಚೆ.

ಆದರ ಅವಶ್ಯ್ಕತೆ ಏಕಿತ್ತೆಂಬುದರ ಮೇಲೆ ಚರ್ಚ್

Modern democracies

Modern democracies developed throughout the 20th century. Democracies have resulted from wars, revolutions, decolonisation and economic circumstances. The number of democracies continues to grow and it has been speculated that this trend may continue in the future to the point where democratic nation-states become the standard form of human society. The most common form of democracy in today's world is rule through peoples' elected representatives.

Activity

Look at the different historical maps of democracy from the ncert texts.

Which countries initially having a democratic form of government.

Choose 2 new countries which have got democracy recently. Find out how they achieved this?

Types of Democracy

Objectives:

1. To distinguish between the types of democracy
2. To understand the relationship between the types of government and democracy.

Direct democracy or Pure democracy -

• a political system in which the citizens vote directly in matters of public concern; every citizen participates in decision-making. It is a form of democracy in which the people as a whole make direct decisions, rather than have those decisions made for them by elected representatives. For example, in a decision making of electing or dismissing someone, it has to be done by all participations and signatures, or this kind of measure will not work.

Representative democracy -

• a form of government in which people elect representatives to rule in their interest; citizens participate in elections and select people to carry out government. It is a type of democracy in which the citizens delegate authority to elected representatives. For instance, when it is required to make a decision to promote someone in the organization, the people will give all the authority to the elected representative to decide whether he or she will be promoted or not.

Types of Governments

Monarchy: Government by a monarch. A state ruled or headed by a monarch. Undivided sovereignty or rule by a single person, who is the permanent head of state. The term is now used to refer to countries with hereditary sovereigns. Monarchy Government by a single ruler (king/queen, emperor)

Dictatorship: The office or tenure of a dictator. A state or government under dictatorial rule. Absolute or despotic control or power. Modern dictators usually use force or fraud to gain power and then keep it through intimidation, terror, suppression of civil liberties, and control of the mass media.

Communist government : A system of government where the government plans and controls the economy. Also all citizens are deemed equal. A communist state is a sovereign state with a form of government characterized by single-party rule or dominant-party rule of a communist party and a professed allegiance to a communist ideology as the guiding principle of the state. In a true communist state you give what you can to the state for distribution, keeping only that required to satisfy your needs.

Military Dictatorship : Administration of territory by an occupying power. The definition does not cover military forces stationed in neutral or friendly territory that share administrative responsibilities with local civil authorities. Military government must also be distinguished from military law and martial law. Its control lasts until it either gives up power voluntarily or is overthrown. The term is popularly used for rule of a country by its own military, whether it comes to power through the legitimate governing body.

Activity

Debate on democracy vs dictatorship

Learning Objectives: 1. To understand the amount freedom in Democracy

2.To understand the merits of Democracy.

Rights in Democracy

Rights are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom or entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or owed to people, according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory. Rights are of essential importance in such disciplines as law and ethics, especially theories of justice and deontology.

Need of Rights in Democracy

(Sourced from NCERT textbooks)

Rights are necessary for the very sustenance of a democracy. In a democracy every citizen has to have the right to vote and the right to be elected to government. For democratic elections to take place it is necessary that citizens should have the right to express their opinion, form political parties and take part in political activities. Rights also perform a very special role in a democracy. Rights protect minorities from the oppression of majority. They ensure that the majority cannot do whatever it likes. Rights are guarantees which can be used when things go wrong. Things may go wrong when some citizens may wish to take away the rights of others. This usually happens when those in majority want to dominate those in minority. The government

should protect the citizens’ rights in such a situation. But sometimes elected governments may not protect or may even attack the rights of their own citizens. That is why some rights need to be placed higher than the government, so that the government cannot violate these. In most democracies the basic rights of the citizen are written down in the

constitution.

Democracy and Caste

The City Palace is the elegant home to Jaipur's Royal Family. While the Maharaj's authority is not recognized by the Indian government, his social status has afforded him business and political opportunities that are not available to the lower classes.

Even though India is a

democracy, the social stratification inherent in the Hindu religion persists to this day. Most politicians come from the upper castes, although there has been gradual change in recent years. Still, most people continue to work in the jobs assigned to their castes — jobs their distant ancestors also worked. One result of this stratification is that the wealthiest Indians are some of the richest people in the world — owning palaces, fleets of luxury cars, jewels, and very big bank accounts. At the same time, the vast majority of Indians suffer extreme poverty. Even finding enough food to get from one day to the next can be a struggle.

In just over 50 years, India has gone from being a British colony to being a functioning, independent democracy. It still faces problems. Overpopulation, poverty, and internal strife threaten Indian stability from time to time. Despite these concerns though, the world's largest democracy has survived the past half-century without a government collapse or military takeover.

ಚಟುವಟಿಕೆ

ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದಲ್ಲಿ ಹಕ್ಕಿನ ಪಾತ್ರ

ಉದ್ದೇಶ - ಸಮಾಜದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿವಿಧ ಜಾತಿ ಜನಾಂಗದವರ ಹಕ್ಕಿ ಉಲ್ಲಂಘನೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಚರ್ಚೆ

ಸಾಮಗ್ರಿಗಳು - projector, lap top ಮತ್ತು India Untouched ನ ಆಯ್ದ ಭಾಗ

ಸೂಚನೆ - India Untouched ನ್ನು ಶಿಕ್ಷಕರು ಮೊದಲೇ ವೀಕ್ಷಿಸಿ, ಅದರಿಂದ ಕೆಲವು ಭಾಗವನ್ನು ಆಯ್ದು ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಕನ್ನಡ ಅನುವಾದ ಮಾಡಿಟ್ಟು ಕೊಂಡಿರಬೇಕು

ಅದೇ ವಿಷಯಕ್ಕೆ ಸೂಕ್ತ ವೆನಿಸುವ ಕಿರು ಚಿತ್ರವನ್ನು ಆಯ್ದು ಕೊಂಡಿರಬೇಕು

ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಸೂಚನೆ -

ವಿಧಾನ - ತರಗತಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಮಕ್ಕಳು ವಿಡಿಯೋ ತುಣುಕನ್ನು ನೋಡಲು ಅನುವು ಮಾಡಿಕೊಡುವುದು.

ವಿಡಿಯೋ ನೋಡಿದ ನಂತರ ಆ ಚಿತ್ರದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಅನಿಸಿಕೆ ಬಅರೆಯಲು ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಕಾಲ ಅವಕಾಶ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಡುವುದು.

ಅನಂತರ ಅದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಮುಕ್ತ ಚರ್ಚೆ ಮಾಡಲು ಹೇಳುವುದು

ಚರ್ಚಾ ವಿಷಯ – ವಿಡೀಯೋ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರು ಕಂಡಂತಹ ಮುಖ್ಯ ಘಟನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಇವರಿಸುವುದು ಮತ್ತು ಅದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಅವರ ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯ

ಇಂಥ ಸನ್ನಿವೇಶಳು ತಮ್ಮ ಸುತ್ತಮುತ್ತಲು ಗಮನಿಸಿದ್ದರೆ ಅದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಅವರ ಅಭಿಪ್ರಾಯ.

( ಬಹಳ ಸೂಕ್ಷ್ಮ ಷಯವಾಗಿರುವುದರಿಂದ, ಬಹಳ ಎಚ್ಚರಿಕೆಇಂದ ಚರ್ಚೆಯನ್ನು ನಡೆಸಿಕೊಡುವುದು )

ಕಲಿಕಾಂಶ -

ಚಟುವಟಿಕೆ -

ಉದ್ದೇಶ - ಲಿಂಗ ತಾರತಮ್ಯದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಚರ್ಚೆ

ಸಾಮಗ್ರಿ - NCERT ಪಠ್ಯ ಪುಸ್ತಕ ದಲ್ಲಿನ ಚಿತ್ರದ ಪ್ರತಿ,( ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ತಂದೆ ಅಥವ ಗಂಡು ಮಗು ಸಹ ಹೆಣ್ಣು ಮಕ್ಕಳಂತೆ ಕಸ ಗುಡಿಸುತ್ತಿರುವುದ್, ಅದುಗೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿರುವುದು )

ವಿಧಾನ – ಆ ಚಿತ್ರದಲ್ಲಿ ಏನನ್ನು ಗಮನಿಸಿದರು ಎಂ ಬುದರ ಪಟ್ಟಿ ಮಾಡುವುದು.

ಚರ್ಚಾ ವಿಷಯ - ಯಾವುದು ನೈಜ ವೆನಿಸುತ್ತದೆ, ಯಾವುದು ವಿಚಿತ್ರವೆನಿಸುತ್ತದೆ.

ಏಕೆ ಹಾಗೆನಿಸುವುದು. ಅದು ಸರಿಯೆ .

ಕಲಿಕಾಂಶ – ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಕೆಲಸಗಳನ್ನು ಯಾರಾದರು ಮಾಡಬಹುದು, ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ಲಿಂಗ ತಾರತಮ್ಯ ಸರಿಯಲ್ಲ

How can we secure these rights?

If rights are like guarantees, they are of no use if there is no one to honour

them. The fundamental rights in the Constitution are important because they are enforceable. We have a right to seek the enforcement of the above

mentioned rights. This is called the Right to Constitutional Remedies. This itself is a Fundamental Right. This right makes other rights effective. It is possible that sometimes our rights may be violated by fellow citizens, private

bodies or by the government. When any of our rights are violated we can

seek remedy through courts. If it is a Fundamental Right we can directly

approach the Supreme Court or the High Court of a state. That is why Dr.

Ambedkar called the Right to Constitutional Remedies, ‘the heart and soul’ of our Constitution.

Fundamental rights are guaranteed against the actions of the Legislatures, Executive, and any other authorities instituted by the government. There can be no law or action that violates the Fundamental Rights. If any act of the Legislature or the Executive takes away or limits any of the Fundamental Rights it will be invalid. We can challenge such laws of the central and state governments, the policies and actions of the government or the governmental organisations like the nationalised banks or electricity boards. Courts also enforce the Fundamental Rights against private individuals and bodies. The Supreme Court and High Courts have the power to issue directions, orders or writs for the enforcement of the Fundamental Rights. They can also award compensation to the victims and punishment to the violators Get more information at the National Human Rights Commission website: [[1]] Elections Rulers elected by the people take all the major decisions elections offer a choice and fair opportunity to the people to change the current rulers. The choice and opportunity is available to all the people on an equal basis.The exercise of this choice leads to government limited by basic rules of constitution and citizens' right. Why Elections ( Sourced from NCERT textbook) But why do we need elections? Let us try to imagine a democracy without elections. A rule of the people is possible without any elections if all the people can sit together everyday and take all the decisions. But this is not possible in any large community. Nor is it possible for everyone to have the time and knowledge to take decisions on all matters. Therefore in most democracies people rule through their representatives. Is there a democratic way of selecting representatives without elections? Let us think of a place where representatives are selected on the basis of age and experience. Or a place where they are chosen on the basis of education or knowledge. There could be some difficulty in deciding on who is more experienced or knowledgable. But let us say the people can resolve these difficulties. Clearly, such a place does not require elections. But can we call this place a democracy? How do we find out if the people like their representatives or not? How do we ensure that these representatives rule as per the wishes of the people? How to make sure that those who the people don’t like do not remain their representatives? This requires a mechanism by which people can choose their representatives at regular intervals and change them if they wish to do so. This mechanism is called election. Therefore, elections are considered essential in our times for any representative democracy. In an election the voters make many choices: They can choose who will make laws for them. They can choose who will form the government and take major decisions. They can choose the party whose policies will guide the government and law making. Though provoking questions Are our elections democratic? Discuss Election procedure Notification : Election Commission announces the date, time and other information Nomination of the candidates : Every person who wishes to contest an election has to fill a nomination form and give some money as security deposit Scrutiny of nomination : The officer, appointed by the Election Commission scrutinizes the nomination forms submitted by the candidates. Withdrawal of nomination : The candidates who want to take back their nomination can do so within specified dates. Election campaign : In election campaigns, political parties try to focus public attention on the issues of the opposite party. There is a free and open discussion about who is better representative, which party will make a better government, or what is a good policy during election campaigns. The parties release their election manifesto during this time to attract the voters. Polling : The voters cast or poll their vote on the election day. Every person whose name is on the voters' list can go to a nearby polling booth situated usually in a local school or a government office. Counting of votes : On the day of counting, the ballot boxes/EVMs are opened and the votes secured by each candidate are counted. The candidate who secures the highest number of votes from a constituency is declared elected. Voters list Democracy depends on active political participation by all the citizens. In a democratic election, the list of people who are eligible to vote is prepared much before than election and given to everyone. This list is officially called the Electoral Role and is commonly known as the voters list. This is an important step for it is linked to the first condition of a democratic election : everyone should get an equal opportunity to choose representatives. Universal Adult Franchise Electoral constituencies Reservation of constituencies Challenges to free and fair elections The party that wins an election and forms government does so because people have chosen it over its rivals. This may not be true for every constituency. A few candidates may win purely on the basis of money power and unfair means. The limitations and challenges to free and fair elections may include Candidates and parties with a lot of money may not be sure of their victory but they do enjoy a big and unfair advantage over smaller parties and independents. Candidates with criminal connection have been able to push others out of the electoral race and secure seat in major parties. Smaller parties an independent candidates suffer a huge disadvantage compared to bigger parties. Booth capturing by some party supporters. Ruling out the code of conduct during elections by the candidates and the supporters. Rigging : Fraud and malpractices indulged by a party or a candidate to increase its votes. About the Independent Election Commission (NCERT textbook) In our country elections are conducted by an independent and very powerful Election Commission (EC). It enjoys the same kind of independence that the judiciary enjoys. The Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) is appointed by the President of India. But once appointed, the Chief Election Commissioner is not answerable to the President or the government. Even if the ruling party or the government does not like what the Commission does, it is virtually impossible for it to remove the CEC. Very few election commissions in the world have such wide-ranging powers as the Election Commission of India. EC takes decisions on every aspect of conduct and control of elections from the announcement of elections to the declaration of results. It implements the Code of Conduct and punishes any candidate or party that violates it. During the election period, the EC can order the government to follow some guidelines, to prevent use and misuse of governmental power to enhance its chances to win elections, or to transfer some government officials. When on election duty, government officers work under the control of the EC and not the government. In the last fifteen years or so, the Election Commission has begun to exercise all its powers and even expand them. It is very common now for the Election Commission to reprimand the government and administration for their lapses. When election officials come to the opinion that polling was not fair in some booths or even an entire constituency, they order a repoll. The ruling parties often do not like what the EC does. But they have to obey. This would not have happened if the EC was not independent and powerful. ಚುಣಾವಣಾ ಪೂರ್ವ Learning Objectives: 'ವಿವಿಧ ಪಕ್ಷಗಳು ಚುಣಾವಣಾ ಪೂರ್ವ ನೀಡುವ ಭರವಸೆಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ವಿಮರ್ಶೆ' ಚುನಾವಣಾ ಸ್ಥಿತಿಗತಿಯನ್ನು ಅರಿಯುವುದು ಬೇಕಗುವ ಸಾಮಗ್ರಿಗಳು - ಪೇಪರ್, ಪೆನ್, ಚಾರ್ಟ ಪೂರ್ವ ತಯಾರಿಯಾಗಿ ಮಾತನಾಡಬೇಕಿರುವ ಸ್ಕ್ರಿಪ್ಟನ್ನು ಬರೆದಿಟ್ಟುಕೊಳ್ಲಲು ಸಹಾಯ ಮಾಡುವುದು. Method : ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಮೊದಲೇ ವಿವಿಧ ಸ್ಥಾನ ಗಳನ್ನು ಆಯ್ದುಕೊಳ್ಳಾಲು ಹೇಳುವುದ್ ( Party president, Secretary, ) ಅವರು ಬರೆದುಕೊಂಡಿರುವ ಸ್ಕ್ರಿಪ್ಟ್ ಬಳಸಿ ಮಾತನಾದಲು ಹೇಳುವುದು ಕಲಿಕಾಂಶ Challenges of free and fair elections: Sourced from NCERT textbook All this leads to a simple conclusion: elections in India are basically free and fair. The party that wins an election and forms government does so because people have chosen it over its rivals. This may not be true for every constituency. A few candidates may win purely on the basis of money power and unfair means. But the overall verdict of a general election still reflects popular preference. There are very few exceptions to this rule in the last fifty years in our country. This is what makes Indian elections democratic. Yet the picture looks different if we ask deeper questions: Are people’s preferences based on real knowledge? Are the voters getting a real choice? Is election really level playing field for everyone? Can an ordinary citizen hope to win elections? Questions of this kind bring the many limitations and challenges of Indian elections to our attention. These include 1. Candidates and parties with a lot of money may not be sure of their victory but they do enjoy a big and unfair advantage over smaller parties and independants. 2. In some parts of the country, candidates with criminal connection have been able to push others out of the electoral race and to sucure a 'ticket' from major parties. 3. Some families tend to dominate political parties; tickets are distributed to relatives from these families. 4. Very often elections offer little choice to ordinary citizens, for both the major parties are quite similar to each other both in policies and practice 5. Smaller parties and independent candidates suffer a huge disadvantage compared to bigger parties. These challenges exist not only in India but also in many established democracies. These deeper issues are a matter of concern for those who believe in democracy. That is why citizens, social activists and organisations have been demanding reforms in our electoral system. Can you think of some reforms? What can a ordinary citizen do to face these challenges? Party system A party system is a concept in comparative political science concerning the system of government by political parties in a democratic country. The idea is that political parties have basic similarities: they control the government, have a stable base of mass popular support, and create internal mechanisms for controlling funding, information and nominations. Multi-party system Multi-party system is a system in which multiple political parties have the capacity to gain control of government offices, separately or in coalition. The effective member of parties in a multi-party system is normally larger than two but lower than ten. In the vast majority of multi-party systems, numerous major and minor political parties hold a serious chance of receiving office, and because they all compete, a majority may not come to be, forcing the creation of a coalition. Multi-party systems tend to be more common in parliamentary systems than presidential system and far more common in countries that utilize proportional representation compared to countries that utilize first fast the post elections. Two-party system Two-party system is a system where two major political parties dominate voting in nearly all elections at every level of government and, as a result, all or nearly all elected offices are members of one of the two major parties. Under a two-party system, one of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually referred to as the majority party while the other is the minority party. While the term two party system is somewhat imprecise and has been used in different countries to mean different things, there is considerable agreement that a system is considered to be of a two party nature when election results show consistently that all or nearly all elected officials belong to only one of the two major parties, such as in the United States. In these cases, the chances for third party candidates winning election to any office are remote, although it's possible for groups within the larger parties, or in opposition to one or both of them, to exert influence on the two major parties. Indian Political Parties The Indian political parties are categorized into two main types. They are :'''' National level parties'''' and ''''state level parties''''. National level parties are political parties which, participate in different 'elections all over India. For example, Indian National Congress, Bhartiya Janata Party, Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and some other parties. State parties or regional parties are political parties which, participate in different elections but only within one state. For example Shiv Sena participates only in Maharashtra, Telegu Desam in Andra Pradesh, Akali Dal in Punjab, Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (DMK) in Tamil Nadu Janatha Dal Secular in Karnataka and there are other such state parties. There are some small communist parties who participate only within one state. Some states have more than one state party. For example in Tamil Nadu another important state party is All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham (AIADMK). Because of these long party names many party names are abbreviated to their initials. Some the political parties have their origin from before India's independence, for example, Indian National Congress, Forward Bloc, Akali Dal, National Conference and some other parties. Some of these parties were either social or political organization before India's independence and they became political parties after India's independence. But many of the present parties were established after India's independence. Members, who split from larger parties, established some of these parties. Coalition government Our political system is brimming over with coalition governments. They have sprung up like mushrooms in a majority of states, along with a government at the centre. The main cause behind this phenomenon, which has rocked the very foundation of Indian democracy is the formation of regional parties, often at the whims and fancies of political leaders. With the emergence of multi-party system , the limelight is now on regional parties who have seized this opportunity and have made formation of government at every level a Herculean task. Every coalition government formed with the union of several parties is like a newborn with medical defects which hamper its growth at every level. Hung Assembly In a multi-party system with legislatures elected by proportionalrepresentation, it is rare for a party to win an outright majority of seats, so a "hung parliament" is the norm and the term is rarely used. However, the term may be used to describe an election in which no established alliance among the parties wins an outright majority. ಚುಣಾವಣಾ ಪ್ರಕ್ರಿಯೆ ಅಣುಕು ಚುಣಾವಣೆ Learning Objectives: ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವದ ನೈಜ ಚಿತ್ರಣವನ್ನು ಮೂಡಿಸುವುದು Materials required : 'ಪೇಪರ್ ಮತ್ತು ಪೆನ್', ink bottle, 'ಖಾಲಿ ಡಬ್ಬ' Pre-requisites/Instructions/Precautions: 'ಯಾರು ಯಾವ ಯಾವ ಸ್ಥಾನಕ್ಕೆ ನಿಲ್ಲು ತ್ತಾರೆ ಮತ್ತು', 'ಚುಣಾವಣಾ ಪೋರ್ವ 'campaign 'ಮೊದಲೇ ಆಗಿರಬೇಕು' ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ಮೊದಲು ಚುಣಾವಣಾ ಪ್ರಕ್ರಿಯೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ತಿಳಿಸಿ, ಮತದಾನವನ್ನು ಹೇಗೆ ಮಾಡಬೇಕೆಂಬುದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ತಿಳಿಸಬೇಕು. ಒಬ್ಬ ವ್ಯಕ್ತಿ ಒಂದು ಮತವನ್ನು ಮಾತ್ರ ಹಾಕಬಹುದೆಂಬುದನ್ನು ತಿಳಿಸುವುದು'.' ವಿಧಾನ '- 'ಒಬ್ಬೊ ಬ್ಬರೇ ಬಂದು ಮತವನ್ನು ಚಲಾಯಿಸುವುದು'.' ಮತ ಚಲಾಯಿಸಿದವರ ತೋರು ಬೆರಳ ಉಗುರಿಗೆ ಶಾಯಿಯ ತೊಟ್ತನ್ನು ತಗಉಲಿಸುವುದು'.' 'Evaluation: 'ಚುಣಾವಣಾ ಪ್ರಕ್ರಿಯೆ ಪೂರ್ಣಗೊಂಡ ನಂತರ ಮತ ಇಂಇಕೆ ಕಾರ್ಯವನ್ನು ಮಕ್ಕಳ ಸಹಾಯದೊಟ್ಟಿ ಗೆ ಶಿಕ್ಷಕರು ನಡೆಸಬೇಕು Tools for a robust democracy:

The Role of Media In Today’s Democracy:

The historical grants of the press and the media have been laid out in such a way that condensing it into a one liner doesn’t diminish its potency. India has a policy that protects the rights of the press to be free. Free from political or corporate influence. Free from any restraint. Free to carry out sting operations. Free to report anything that they deem worthy. Compared to our neighbours, the freedoms that the press has could easily venture towards the right to slander!

Media and democracy in India have been intertwined for a long, long time. While other countries exercise freedom of the press, the reason that the Indian democracy’s relationship with the media is so strong is because the media played a big role in helping India achieve her independence. The press, at that time, along with the swadeshi radio performed the singularly important task of disseminating opinion as well as speeches that the Mahatma and regional leaders made. Fast forward to modern times, and you see Times Now positioning leaders of the India Against Corruption movement against politicians in a no-holds-bar debate which became a television event beating out every popular soap opera in terms of the eyeballs that it garnered.

While the existence of a free press is one of the prerequisites of a democracy, the issues based media that we have in today’s date is doing a job that can be certified as good enough. Sure, there are stories that get buried and sometimes the most heart-wrenching of cases don’t get the attention they deserve, but the spade of citizen journalism that everyone from the compulsive tweeter to the prolific blogger is pulling out is inching towards making a difference there.

Right to information

The Right to Information Act 2005 (RTI) is an Act of the Parliament of India"to provide for setting out the practical regime of right to information for citizens." The Act applies to all States and Union Territories of India except the State of Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir has its own act called Jammu & Kashmir Right to Information Act, 2009. Under the provisions of the Act, any citizen may request information from a "public authority" (a body of Government or "instrumentality of State") which is required to reply expeditiously or within thirty days. The Act also requires every public authority to computerize their records for wide dissemination and to pro-actively publish certain categories of information so that the citizens need minimum recourse to request for information formally. This law was passed by Parliament on 15 June 2005 and came fully into force on 12 October 2005. Information disclosure in India was hitherto restricted by the Official Secrets Act 1923 and various other special laws, which the new RTI Act now relaxes.

Enrichment Activities

Different cartoons from NCERT textbooks which can be used in the class as discussion pieces for this topic