India has dropped 10 places to be ranked 51st of 165 nations in the Democracy Index 2019 – a list of the most and least democratic countries in the world – published by The Economist Intelligence Unit in its annual report.
In 2017 and 2018, India received a score of 7.23, coming down from 7.81 in 2016. India seems to be going backwards with each passing year. The primary cause of the democratic regression is the erosion of civil liberties in the country. The present regime at the Centre is averse to any voices questioning its decision. The brutal crackdown of anti Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protesters in states like UP, Karnataka -all ruled by the BJP -is example of how the government of the day does not care about democratic values.
Though large sections of people are protesting against the CCA, Union Home Minister Amit Shah declared that the government will not back down and that his government does not care what protestors do.
Another example of extreme brutality of the present regime is the way they are dealing with the Kashmir situation. After the Centre withdrew Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir has been hit by a stringent security lockdown that included deployment of large numbers of soldiers and suspension of mobile and broadband internet for over 100 days.
The founding fathers of this great nation had done a remarkable job of transforming India into a liberal democracy after getting independence from British. It is the duty of every Indian to uphold the democratic values enshrined in the Constitution. The dwindling democracy index is matter of concern for every Indian and everyone should work towards preserving the democratic values.