00:00Though majority, rule of majority is an integral part of democracy, in my view, majoritarianism is an antithesis of democracy.
00:13I chose this topic when many topics were given to me because of what is happening and what is troubling us in the country today,
00:23where dissent is termed to be something like as if you are an anti-national or a traitor to the country.
00:30Just because you hold a contrarian view does not mean that you are disrespectful to the country.
00:39You may be disrespectful to the government or the powers that be, but the government and the country are two different things.
00:46But more why I am troubled is because I see members of the bar in various parts of the country, thankfully not the SCBA,
00:58but various parts of the country, bar associations passing resolutions that in such and such matter they will not appear because it is an anti-national.
01:07I am sorry that goes against the provisions of the Advocates Act. It goes against the provisions of the Bar Council rules.
01:14And the rules which basically the very, as advocates we cannot refuse to give legal aid to anybody.
01:22Though majority, rule of majority is an integral part of democracy, in my view, majoritarianism is an antithesis of democracy.
01:32Especially in a country like India, where our democracy is based on the first-past-the-post system,
01:42more often than not, those in power will not represent the majority of the voting electorate,
01:52let alone the majority of the people. But let us assume that they have got 51% votes population-wise.
02:04Does that mean that the other 49% now have to keep silent for 5 years and say nothing?
02:11Does that mean that those 49% have no voice for the 5 years?
02:16That they must accept whatever is done and not protest against it?
02:21So, these, in a democracy, the government once elected is a government for the 100%.
02:29It's not a government for those 51% or whatever percentage voted for them. It's a government for all the percent.
02:37So, every citizen, whether he voted for you or did not vote for you, has a right to play his role in the democratic process.
02:46When I talk of Dysentery in Democracy, I think this most beautiful of books which we have, the Constitution of India,
02:53I always refer back to it. And the preamble has adorned my table in the chambers the day since I became a judge.
03:03And anytime I feel difficulty in finding a solution to a problem, I read the preamble again,
03:10and more often than not, find the answer to my, solution to my problem.
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