Quadrant II - Notes
Programme: Bachelor of Arts
Subject: Political Science
Paper Code: POC 102
Paper Title: Politics and Political ideas
Unit: 03
Module Name: Merits and Demerits of Democracy
Module No: 21
Name of the Presenter: Asst Prof. Angela Dias e Rodrigues
Merits and Demerits of Democracy
• Democracy word made from two words- demo and kratos.
Demo means people and kratos means power. Therefore,
supreme power lies with the people.
So the word democracy means people's power and
government in which the power is vested into the hands of
people is known as democratic government.
The famous thinkers like Rousseau, John Locke, Barker, Laski
etc are the main supporters of democracy and they presented
the different forms of it.
• According to Lord Bryce, democracy is that form of government
in which ruling power of the state is vested not in particular
class or classes but in the members of the community as a
whole.
•
According to Prof. Selley, democracy is a government in which
everyone has a share.
Merits of Democracy
1. The participation of the individual members in the
government facilitates to enlist their sympathy and co -
operation to the success of the government.
2. It is an effective form to educate the public about political,
economic and social affairs.
3. It is helpful to promote patriotism among the people and
prevents the occurrence of violent revolutions.
4. It helps to make progress and development and enables
changes to take place in a peaceful manner.
5. It ensures the people freedom of speech, conscience,
assembly and action.
6. It guarantees liberty and equality, which are necessary for
human development.
7. In a democracy, the rights and interests of every section of
the people in a democratic state are adequately safeguarded. It
can command the resources of all, because it stands for the
benefit of all.
8. It broadens the vision of all, neutralizing the inherent selfish
tendencies of the human mind.
9. It offers huge personal privilege to every citizen of the land
and stands against any suppression of thought, speech or
association.
10. The greatest virtue of democracy is that it stands for the
unfettered development of the human spirit and free
expression of the human mind
Demerits of Democracy
1. It sometimes leads to establish the majority view over the
minority view.
2. Party leaders and political office holders in government
control the citizens and the members of the party.
3. It does not encourage individuals to give their opinions.
4. It is a very expensive form of government because elections
have to be conducted periodically to the various office.
5. It is difficult to prevent corruption and malpractices.
6. It is also known as government by amateurs and lead to
domination of masses.
7. The decision-making process is slow in democracy as it
involves long debates and deliberations in the Parliament.
8. Self-discipline, good conscience, and intellect are pre-
requisites for every citizen to have a successful democratic
society.
9. Self-interest is the most common and a majority of the
people is unwilling to subordinate it to the general will of the
community.
10. Democracy has been characterized by these critics as
mobocracy, it produces quantity rather than quality. This rule
of the majority has at times proved to be the most incompetent
and worthless.
Conclusion
The world has been experimenting with so many systems of
government, but no other system could satisfy the basic needs
of the people. So, democracy has been accepted as the best
form of government where a man can really enjoy equality of
opportunity, liberty, and freedom.
