Democracy, in simple terms, is a form of government that is run by the people, with freedom as its cornerstone, and values like Equality, Justice, Opportunity etc., as its basic tenets. The proponents of democracy claim that it is the only way forward; for it brings prosperity, helps build a resilient and robust economy, enhances the standard of living, …. Cures your baldness and what not. It is the only hope for the mankind!

All this appears noble, and the picture rosy – a paranoid view of the world. Democracy, as it is practiced, is light years apart. It is no panacea to all of the world’s problems. Perhaps, Democracy is the biggest hoax to have befallen upon this world. Here’s why.

No Panacea: Democracy is not the answer for everybody. Not all countries can adapt to democracy. Probably, democracy works better for countries with small population where there is more chance of direct people participation. In bigger countries, everybody cannot participate directly. Such countries have adopted indirect people participation, creating layers of governing bodies; only to make room for unnecessary bureaucracy and in the process diluting the fundamental principle underlying democracy. Thus, contradicting the very definition of democracy.

Equality: Democracy propounds equality to all its citizens. This is absolute farce. It is well-known fact that no two individuals are alike – a fundamental (yet, unwritten) rule of nature. Not everybody can become a doctor, an engineer, a sportsman. And not all cricketers could become the ‘Master Blaster'. Therefore, any claims of equality, is only a deception disguised as a fair and appealing thought.

Elections: Any democratic country with a reasonably big population operates by means of indirect people participation. The people are represented by an elected representative, inducing layers of indirection. More often than not, these representatives, does not even possess a vague idea of what their people want; Nor do the people know their representatives. Further, the system has a lot of loopholes that there is no means to check their performance – once elected you have no option to withdraw your vote. Unfortunately, democracy has been reduced to election, which is a mere game of numbers!

Lack of Conceptual Integrity: With multiple political parties, each with their own ideology, owning a piece of the parliamentary pie, does only manage to indulge themselves in petty feuds. This only serves to hinder the progress of the country. As with any discipline, this lack of Conceptual Integrity results in lack of proper vision. Such an impaired vision cannot take the country far.

The list could go on… But, let’s digest this. If democracy itself is the solution to a country’s problems, then how is it that countries like China and Singapore prosper; better than many other democracies do? Are democracies any less corrupt?

Having said that, I am by no means a supporter of dictatorship or any other form of governance. Perhaps, they are no better than democracy. Probably, Demo(n)cracy is the lesser evil. For now, we the hapless citizens, have to be content with current avatar of Democracy.