Are We Not a Stupid Democracy.......

These were the questions I once received with the same subject title – (1) What happened to our Nation and when we shall have abundance for all; (2) All problems stem from our Constitution that cannot separate criminals from the rest. It is the very same Constitution that once we celebrated; (3) Biggest Democracy! Where people cannot choose their representatives and leaders are picked by the Boards and common people do not have any say; and (4) Why are we not revolting like the French Revolution. Are we a nation of soft people, born to bear all this shit and would continue doing this, etc, etc.

There is a saying, "when you are around your mother, you do not really feel her absence". Similar is the case. Those who ask the question, are we not a stupid democracy, are, as I feel, really stupid. It’s because they have not experienced the situation in a non-democratic country. They are the privileged sections of our society. My brief answer would be –

(1) What have we done with the extra money we earn beyond our necessity? Have we distributed them among the poor and hungry people? No, it’s easy to say than doing anything concrete.

(2) Its not the Constitution which needs to be blame. It you and I - we the people are to be blame. We should be thankful that this Constitution has provided us the freedom to speak and because of that we are allowed to criticize. Neera Chandhoke (2003) makes a distinction between the authoritarian and democratic countries. According to her, the former grants you the economic rights by providing a comfortable living. However, it snatches away the civil and political rights of the citizens. And this kind of state can also snatch the economic rights of the individuals in society. The citizens lose their right to assert rights. However, the later may not guarantee the luxurious living standard of the authoritarian states, but it does guarantee the citizens to assert their rights in the court of justice. The most marginalized of the citizens can also demand the accountability of the state. Democracy does not guarantee you economic wellbeing; but it does guarantee the civil and political rights to its citizens within the sovereign political territory. Go to the non-democratic/ authoritarian countries and experience; they will tell you what you are and are not allowed to speak. Do not blame the Constitution; blame ourselves that we have not done anything to implement those rights and duties enshrined in the Constitution. Instead, we have twisted them for our personal benefits.

(3) Again, it is not the democratic system to be blame. It is the people who decide how the system would work.

(4) Why do not we revolt? It’s because people like you and me are bonded by patronage relationship. We get our work done through the patron-client relationship and our "self" has been compromised. We have no moral to raise fingers towards others. As explaining the ‘politics of patronage’ in rural Rajasthan, Mr. Ajay S. Mehta (2007) – the Executive Director of NFI – told me, “many, many people over past sixty years have been compromised either with an extra samosa or with an extra muster roll where you have not worked and you have got the wage. If you have got half the wage, you are happy because you got it by standing in the shade. And none of us – civil society activists or voluntary organizations – are telling the workers that this is the way that you are compromising the autonomy”.

To make democracy work, we need to rethink about the structure of power in society. Who holds the power? Who controls the society? To conclude, When authority will make its way to the hands of the autonomous mass, all these questions will lose their relevance.

Doing Monkey Business

Shifting Identities

Identity of an entity is neither monolithic nor fixed. It is ever changing and can simultaneouly acquire plural and multilayered levels. It is a product of social construction in a particular time and setting.


Not only the identities of human beings become different over time and context but also the identities of non-living entities change. This is the picture of the famous Fullerton Hotel Singapore whose identity has passed through a long, pluralistic trajectory. It was born in 1928 with a colonial identity and now enjoying the transformed identity of a luxurious Hotel situated at the mouth of the Singapore River and at the heart of Singapore’s financial and arts districts. Its history shares the level of multiple identities such as the General Post Office, The Exchange, the Chamber of Commerce and The Singapore Club all of which played important economic roles in ensuring that Singapore remained the trading hub in South-east Asia at the time.

"History" of Nations

Imagine, why did I not take up History as a subject of study during my Undergraduate days? Thought, its useless studying History which is nothing but the life of "Dead Heads". How would it be useful? Today, I feel its absense not because of the fact that I donot know the life spans of the dead heads of history but because of the fact that it is important for understanding the present status and future direction of a society. The techno-managerial sciences do not understand its relevance as they are somewhat socially crippled. This is the reason why Mr. Chandrababu Naidu - one of the progressive Chief Ministers of an Indian state thought of closing down the the History Departments in the state of Andhra Pradesh.

Ask today the Chinese and the Japanese what History means to them? What's behind the growing conflict between these two societies? And the answer is - HISTORY - The history of war and Japanese occupation of China. There has been continuous protests on the streets of China against the Japanese attitude towards the "past". The Chinese did not like the former Japanese premier Junichiro Koizumi's visit to the Yasukuni - a shrine to Japanese war dead that includes war criminals and portrays Japan’s colonization and conquest of Asian neighbors as a noble effort to free Asia from Western dominance; and the Japanese government’s approval of a junior high school textbook that whitewashes Japanese atrocities committed against Chinese and other Asians from the 1930s through the Second World War.

These feelings of antagonism against atrocities goes back to the hisotry of nationalism and colonialism. The culture of Colonization was justified on the ground that it is the "Whiteman's burden (though not in Japanese case) to Civilise the Oriental Savage". Modern Nation-states were born as the endproducts of long anti-clonial nationalist struggle. As Partha Chatterjee (1993) tells us, "the forms of the modern state were imported into these countries through the agency of colonial rule". This does not mean that Nation-states in the east would not have come into existence, if the Orients had not been colonised. There are countries who qualify the characteristics of progressive Nation-states, but never experienced colonialism. However, I would say, Colonialism strengthened the feelings of Nationalsim in the east.

"History" is not about the dead heads; it is about the rich cultural past and uniqueness of identity of a particular Nation. It is the very reason of our existence in a society.

French Dilemma?

One of Europe's most powerful country is graplling today in finding a leader for the nation-state. The French society is affected by ethnic clevages, political apathy, lack of direction and most importantly a dilemma between Capitalism and Socialism. This dilemma is reflected in the Presidential election candidature of Mr. Sarkozy and Ms. Royal. The decision of almost 45 million voters will decide not only the fate of these candidates but also the course of direction that the country wants to take. Italy and Spain expect Ms Royal; where as Germany, England and the director of (nations)states - the USA prefer Mr. Sarkozy. As globalization and with it the open market economy leaps forward, and the people's apiration for consumerism grows across the globe, the question is how far the socialist policies Ms. Royal appeal people beyond the the working class? To add here, the French working class is becoming negligible and most importantly vulnerable before the regulations of the capital. On the other hand, what vision Mr. Sarkozy has in rescuing France from economic and political crisis and in advancing what France was once known for - equality, liberty, and fraternity?

Resolving the dilemma depends on the decision of the French citizen....

Shopper’s Paradise or Learning Center? Deconstructing Stereotypes

Not long back; recently while doing my fieldwork among the so called notorious and criminal tribes (Bhils) of Southern Rajasthan, I had the opportunity to meet varieties of people – academics, journalists, NGO activists, people’s representatives, tourists, donor agents and most importantly the ‘subjects’ or we may call the ‘objects’ of government and NGO welfare programmes – the tribals. It was not my research which surprised most of the people, rather it the place from where I am currently receiving my academic trainings. It is Singapore. Many of the people came with the same surprising question that “I have never heard anyone going to Singapore to continue with their higher studies”. A lady activist of a NGO also asked me that “I thought Singapore is a place for shopping and tourism”.

My implicit feelings of pleasure and satisfaction of studying abroad were shattered into pieces by their remarks. It, frankly speaking, let me feel embarrassed. I, however, had an answer to their questions – it is true that Singapore has long considered as a “shopper’s paradise” and none has recognized it as a center for learning and education. We have always looked upon America and Britain as our pathfinders and solution providers. The reasons for this could be the ‘history of colonialism’ (colonization of mind) and the economic and political dominance of these countries in the world order (hegemony). It is also associated with the ‘history of modernity’. I do not deny their role in educating the young mind around the globe. However, what I want to suggest is that it is not a matter of where you learn but what you learn. I agree that the American and British Universities still play dominant role in the field of higher education, but at the same there are many other universities which are important centers of higher education. The center of education has decentered. Singapore is not only a shopper’s paradise but also an education hub with immense opportunities and respect for talents.


In 2006, three Asian Universities have been ranked amongst the top-twenty Universities of the World conducted by the Times Higher Education Supplement. The criteria used for this year's rankings include research quality; teaching quality; graduate employability; and international outlook. The National University of Singapore (NUS) has been ranked 19th amongst the World’s top 20 Universities. In Technology it is at 8th and in Biomedicine it stands at 9th position. In Social Science it is at 11th; in Arts and Humanities it is at 22nd; and in Science it also stands at 22nd position (see http://newshub.nus.edu.sg/headlines/0610/ranking_07oct06.htm).

What we need is to deconstruct the stereotypes by deconstructing the popular psyche….

Piety of "Self"

“Self” is not an isolated entity. It grows with every passing moment and every new experience. Its immaturity and growth is contingent upon time and space. What I think today right may not be the same tomorrow. But it was right when I thought of it. We cannot judge the actions of our past in the lenses that we wear today. It may be true that we sometimes pay a huge price for the irresponsible actions of our immature self (in today’s context) and makes us regret what we did. But we forget the fact that this is a comparison between two different timelines. If we go down the timeline and ask ourselves about our actions, I am sure that we will be getting exactly the same answer what we offered then to ourselves. This is how we learn from experience. No regret, no expectation. Take life as it comes ....

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