Majoritarianism: Contextualizing Populism in India

Abstract

Contemporary political science discourse is replete with reference to democratic process in an essentially multipolar yet highly destabilized world order. The recent skirmishes across the states have also highlighted the instability of nation-states and their power structure to engage in debate, dialogue, and discussion as means of negotiation as demanded by democratic norms. But democracy itself has its flaws and one of them being the problem of populism, new populism and in its extension majoritarianism. Populism has been used as political strategy to undermine the spirit of dissension and criticism of the power that be. The logic of putting the needs of majority over others and providing them a larger share of state’s resources despite attracting the masses undermine the political and human rights of minority communities. Needless to add, political and social theorists view populism as detrimental to democracy and rule of law.