Neither Licchavi, Uttaramerur or Westminster, India Needs a Republic That Empowers Its Citizens
At the Democracy Summit held in December 2021, Prime Minister Modi said that, ‘The democratic spirit is integral to our civilisation ethos. Elected republican city-states such as Licchavi and Shakya flourished in India as far as 2500 years back. The same democratic spirit is seen in the 10th century “Uttaramerur” inscription that codified the principles of democratic participation. This very democratic spirit and ethos had made ancient India one of the most prosperous. Centuries of colonial rule could not suppress the democratic spirit of the Indian people. It again found full expression with India’s independence, and led to an unparalleled story in democratic nation-building over the last 75 years’.
In case someone missed the point, Modi added that ‘Democracy is not only of the people, by the people, for the people but also with the people, within the people’.
