class 9 Sst ncert notes for ctet
•democracy is a form of government in which the rulers are elected by the people.
•The army rulers of Myanmar were not elected by the people. Dictators like Pinochet (Chile) are not elected by the people. This also applies to monarchies. The kings of Saudi Arabia rule not because the people have chosen them.
•Democracy gives every man the right to be his own oppressor. Democracy consists of choosing your dictators after they’ve told you what you think it is you want to hear. Man’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man’s inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary. Democracy is a device that insures we shall be governed no better than we deserve. All the ills of democracy can be cured by more democracy.
•In Pakistan, General Pervez Musharraf led a military coup in October 1999. He overthrew a democratically elected government and declared himself the ‘Chief Executive’ of the country. Later he changed his designation to President and in 2002 held a referendum in the country that granted him a fiveyear extension. Pakistani media, human rights organisations and democracy activists said that the referendum was based on malpractices and fraud. In August 2002 he issued a ‘Legal Framework Order’ that amended the Constitution of Pakistan. According to this Order, the President can dismiss the national and provincial assemblies. The work of the civilian cabinet is supervised by a National Security Council which is dominated by military officers. After passing this law, elections were held to the national and provincial assemblies. So Pakistan has had elections, elected representatives have some powers. But the final power rested with military officers and General Musharraf himself.
•In a democracy the final decisionmaking power must rest with those elected by the people.
•In China, elections are regularly held after every five years for electing the country’s parliament, called Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (National People’s Congress). The National People’s Congress has the power to appoint the President of the country. It has nearly 3,000 members elected from all over China. Some members are elected by the army. Before contesting elections, a candidate needs the approval of the Chinese Communist Party. Only those who are members of the Chinese Communist Party or eight smaller parties allied to it were allowed to contest elections held in 2002-03. The government is always formed by the Communist Party.
Since its independence in 1930, Mexico holds elections after every six years to elect its President. The country has never been under a military or dictator’s rule. But until 2000 every election was won by a party called PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party).
• A democracy must be based on a free and fair election where those currently in power have a fair chance of losing.
•Until 2015, in Saudi Arabia women did not have the right to vote. Estonia has made its citizenship rules in such a way that people belonging to Russian minority find it difficult to get the right to vote. In Fiji, the electoral system is such that the vote of an indigenous Fiji has more value than that of an Indian-Fijian. Democracy is based on a fundamental principle of political equality. That gives us the third feature of democracy: in a democracy, each adult citizen must have one vote and each vote must have one value.
•Zimbabwe attained independence from White minority rule in 1980. Since then the country has been ruled by ZANU-PF, the party that led the freedom struggle. Its leader, Robert Mugabe, ruled the country since independence. Elections were held regularly and always won by ZANU-PF. President Mugabe was popular but also used unfair practices in elections. Over the years his government changed the constitution several times to increase the powers of the President and make him less accountable. Opposition party workers were
•a democratic government rules within limits set by constitutional law and citizens’ rights.
•four features of democracy as a form of government. Accordingly, democracy is a form of government in which: Rulers elected by the people take all the major decisions; Elections offer a choice and fair opportunity to the people to change the current rulers; This choice and opportunity is available to all the people on an equal basis; and The exercise of this choice leads to a government limited by basic rules of the constitution and citizens’ rights.
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Rule of law -Feature King of Bhutan has declared that in future he will be guided by the advice given to him by elected representatives. Many Tamil workers who migrated from India were not given a right to vote in Sri Lanka.- Respect for rights, The king imposed a ban on political gatherings, demonstrations and rallies. - one person, one vote, one value. The Indian Supreme Court held that the dissolution of Bihar assembly was unconstitutional-free and fair electro competition ..Political parties in Bangladesh have agreed that a neutral government should rule the country at the time of elections- Major decisions by elected leaders
•some of these arguments: Leaders keep changing in a democracy. This leads to instability. Democracy is all about political competition and power play. There is no scope for morality. So many people have to be consulted in a democracy that it leads to delays. Elected leaders do not know the best interest of the people. It leads to bad decisions. Democracy leads to corruption for it is based on electoral competition. Ordinary people don’t know what is good for them; they should not decide anything.
•China’s famine of 1958-1961 was the worst recorded famine in world history. Nearly three crore people died in this famine. During those days, India’s economic condition was not much better than China.
• A democratic government is a better government because it is a more accountable form of government. There is another reason why democracy should lead to better decisions than any non-democratic government. Democracy is based on consultation and discussion. A democratic decision always involves many persons, discussions and meetings. When a number of people put their heads together, they are able to point out possible mistakes in any decision. This takes time. But there is a big advantage in taking time over important decisions. This reduces the chances of rash or irresponsible decisions. Thus democracy improves the quality of decision-making.
Ques/Ans
1 Here is some information about four countries. Based on this information, how would you classify each of these countries. Write ‘democratic’, ‘undemocratic’ or ‘not sure’ against each of these. a Country
A: People who do not accept the country’s official religion do not have a right to vote. b Country
B: The same party has been winning elections for the last twenty years. c Country
C: Ruling party has lost in the last three elections. d Country
D: There is no independent election commission.
2 Here is some information about four countries. Based on this information, how would you classify each of these countries. Write ‘democratic’, ‘undemocratic’ or ‘not sure’ against each of these.
a Country P:
7 The parliament cannot pass a law about the army without the consent of the Chief of Army.
b Country Q: The parliament cannot pass a law reducing the powers of the judiciary.
c Country R: The country’s leaders cannot sign any treaty with another country without taking permission from its neighbouring country. d Country S: All the major economic decisions about the country are taken by officials of the central bank which the ministers cannot change.
3 Which of these is not a good argument in favour of democracy? Why?
a People feel free and equal in a democracy. b Democracies resolve conflict in a better way than others.
c Democratic government is more accountable to the people.
d Democracies are more prosperous than others.
4 )Each of these statements contains a democratic and an undemocratic element. Write out the two separately for each statement.
a A minister said that some laws have to be passed by the parliament in order to conform to the regulations decided by the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
b The Election Commission ordered re-polling in a constituency where large-scale rigging was reported.
c Women’s representation in the parliament has barely reached 10 per cent. This led women’s organisations to demand one-third seats for women.
5)Which of these is not a valid reason for arguing that there is a lesser possibility of famine in a democratic country?
a Opposition parties can draw attention to hunger and starvation.
b Free press can report suffering from famine in different parts of the country.
c Government fears its defeat in the next elections.
d People are free to believe in and practise any religion.
6 There are 40 villages in a district where the government has made no provision for drinking water. These villagers met and considered many methods of forcing the government to respond to their need. Which of these is not a democratic method?
a Filing a case in the courts claiming that water is part of right to life.
b Boycotting the next elections to give a message to all parties.
c Organising public meetings against government’s policies. d Paying money to government officials to get water.
7 Write a response to the following arguments against democracy:
a. the Army is the most disciplined and corruption-free organisation in the country. Therefore army should rule the country.
b Rule of the majority means the rule of ignorant people. What we need is the rule of the wise, even if they are in small numbers
c If we want religious leaders to guide us in spiritual matters, why not invite them to guide us in politics as well. The country should be ruled by religious leaders.
8 Are the following statements in keeping with democracy as a value? Why?
a Father to daughter: I don’t want to hear your opinion about your marriage. In our family children marry where the parents tell them to.
b Teacher to student: Don’t disturb my concentration by asking me questions in the classroom. c Employee to the officer: Our working hours must be reduced according to the law.
9 Consider the following facts about a country and decide if you would call it a democracy. Give reasons to support your decision.
a All the citizens of the country have right to vote. Elections are held regularly.
b The country took loan from international agencies. One of the conditions for giving loan was that the government would reduce its expenses on education and health.
c People speak more than seven languages but education is available only in one language, the language spoken by 52 percent people of that country.
d Several organisations have given a call for peaceful demonstrations and nation wide strikes in the country to oppose these policies. Government has arrested these leaders.
e The government owns the radio and television in the country. All the newspapers have to get permission from the government to publish any news about government’s policies and protests.
10 In 2004 a report published in USA pointed to the increasing inequalities in that country. Inequalities in income reflected in the participation of people in democracy. It also shaped their abilities to influence the decisions taken by the government. The report highlighted that: If an average Black family earns $ 100 then the income of average White family is $ 162.
A White family has twelve times more wealth than the average Black family. In a President’s election ‘nearly 9 out of 10 individuals in families with income over $ 75,000 have voted. These people are the top 20% of the population in terms of their income. On the other hand only 5 people out of 10 from families with income less than $ 15,000 have voted. They are the bottom 20% of the population in terms of their income. About 95% contribution to the political parties comes from the rich. This gives them opportunity to express their opinions and concerns, which is not available to most citizens. As poor sections participate less in politics, the government does not listen to their concerns – coming out of poverty, getting job, education, health care and housing for them. Politicians hear most regularly about the concerns of business persons and the rich.
Write an essay on ‘Democracy and Poverty’ using the information given in this report but using examples from India. Most newspapers have an editorial page. On that page the newspaper publishes its own opinions about current affairs. The paper also publishes the views of other writers and intellectuals and letters written by the readers. Follow any one newspaper for one month and collect editorials, articles and letters on that page that have anything to do with democracy. Classify these into the following categories: Constitutional and legal aspects of democracy Citizens’ rights Electoral and party politics Criticism of democracy
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