ON EQUALITY

Democracy- Key elements of Democracy

Rewrite the story in your own words.(In SPL note book)

Democracy

• Democracy is the governance of the people, by the people and for the people.

• The key elements of democracy are- Participation of the people in decision making and dispute resolution, equality and justice.

key element in Democracy

Equality is the most important element in a democracy. If the people of a country are not treated equally, it can't be a true democracy. Because equality of all the citizens ensures their participation in the election of the democratic government which will work for the welfare of all.

• The concept of equality in a democracy can be understood with the help of following example:

• In our country the value of each vote is one. It means that if two people, one rich and one poor, are voting the count of votes will be two only. The vote of a rich person will also have the same value as the poor.

• Now imagine a situation where the value of the rich man’s vote is ten. Do you think the government formed in this way will be a democratic government?

• The Answer is NO.• Thus the conclusion is- Without equality

democracy can’t exist.

Universal Adult Franchise

• In order to ensure the equality of all in a democratic nation Universal adult franchise can be said to be the stepping stone.

• The idea of universal adult franchise is based on the idea of equality because it states that every adult in the country, irrespective of their wealth and community she/he belongs has one vote.

• Note: Read the storyboard given on page no. 4,5.

Equality in India

• India is a democratic country and all its citizens have equal voting rights.

• But are we really equal?????????• You read the story of Kanta. In India, there are

millions of people like her for whom democracy does not have the same meaning as we discussed above.They feel less equal than others.

Reasons of inequality in India

People in India are treated unequally on various basis:

1 •GENDER•POVERTY

2 •LANGUAGE•CASTE

3 •CULTURE•RELIGION

Caste System in India

• One of the more common forms of inequality in is the caste system. You may feel that now no one is concerned about which caste you belong to. This is partly true about the urban areas. But if you visit a rural area or you speak to someone from rural area you will realize that from their childhood they are taught to have a particular attitude towards their own caste and the other castes of the society.

Note: Read the story of Omprakash Valmiki given on page no.7 and 8.

In ancient India, the Hindu society was divided into four varnas- Brahmans, Kshatriya, Vaishyas and Shudras. Shudras being the lowest in the order were considered untouchables. They were not allowed to attend school, religious ceremonies and public gathering with other caste.

Now, even after the 65 years of our ofindependence and in spite of various legalprovisions to secure equality of all citizens thesepeople are treated unequally. It is all because of theprejudices and stereotype thinking of our society.

• Dalit- Dalit is a term that the so called lower caste people use to address themselves.

Let’s do

• Explain the term democracy.• What do understand by the term ‘Dalit’?• Why do you think Kanta is not equal to Jain

Saheb?• List the key reason of inequality in India.

Let’s understand