The problem

DEMOCRACY in India runs deep. But paradoxically, as elections in India become more competitive, and excite greater and wider participation, they are also producing representatives with authoritarian governing styles, centralized control of their parties, dynasties to succeed them, hierarchical relationships with their followers, and an intolerance of dissent. This is true not only of prominent leaders at the apex level of politics but also less exalted representatives – MPs, MLAs, and even panchayat leaders – who are often local strongmen, elected and sometimes beloved, precisely for these qualities.

It’s not just India, of course. The emergence of authoritarian leadership in democracies is becoming a part of a worldwide trend towards elected authoritarianism: the electoral victories of Trump in the US, Putin in Russia, Duterte in the Philippines and Erdogan in Turkey are all cases in point.

Further, authoritarian styles of leadership in India and often elsewhere have emerged in collaboration with democratic elements – high participation, a democratic culture, elections which frequently throw incumbents out, power sharing, and high levels of inclusion. The close relationship between democratic and authoritarian elements exists in other countries as well.

This issue of Seminar brings together political scientists, political anthropologists, journalists, and writers to comment on the relationship between democracy and authoritarianism in India and globally, asking questions such as the following: What is the nature of the relationship between democracy and authoritarianism? Why do we see so many examples of seeming authoritarian leadership emerging in India and in democracies across the world? Where are the exceptions? Is ‘authoritarian’ the right way to describe these leaders or should they be conceptualized differently? How do the trends and forms of authoritarian leadership across democracies compare with each other, and what are their implications for democratic practice and consolidation?

KANCHAN CHANDRA