Democracy Index: India reached the lowest level in 13 years

India has fallen number 10 in the Democracy Index to 51st in the list of 165 countries. Removal of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir, due to NRC and CAA has fallen in India’s democracy index.

According to the Global Ranking released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), India’s total score on a scale of zero to 10 was 6.90 in 2019 as compared to 7.23 in 2018. This is India’s worst score since the introduction of the Democracy Index in 2006.

According to this index, Norway ranked first in 2019 with a score of 9.87. This global list gives the state of the current state of democracy in 165 independent countries and two regions. According to the EIU report, the main reason for the decline in India’s ranking is the reduction in civil liberties in the country. The EIU cited the reason for giving India a low score, “The Indian government removed two important articles from Jammu and Kashmir and took away the status of a special state from it and made it a Union Territory. Prior to this decision, the government deployed heavy troops there, Many restrictions were imposed and local leaders were put under house arrest. Internet was banned there. “

At the same time, the report said on the disputed National Register of Citizens (NRC), “With the implementation of NRC in Assam, about 19 lakh people have been left out of the final list which includes a large number of Muslims. Citizenship Amendment Act has led to a large number of Muslims in the country are angry. Communal tension has increased and there are protests against this law in many big cities. “

On this index, Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien told media, “The Prime Minister and Home Minister are spreading poison in the country. They are in the mood to destroy a prestigious institution like Parliament. All forms of dissent are being strangled.” The government is suppressing the voice of the students. The idea of ​​ India is being scrapped. The students and youth of the country are angry and when it happe ns, you should know that the government is lost Serious the crisis. “

BJP has been defending the removal of Articles 370 and 35A from Kashmir and says that the removal of 370 will develop Kashmir. BJP leader Sayantan Basu says, “Some western organizations keep doing this kind of review. Questions can be raised about its transparency and recognition. In this report, we found that the reason for giving a low score is given to Kashmir but we remember it It should be kept that 45 thousand people have become victims of terrorism in Kashmir. The government has taken many steps to normalize the atmosphere there. Raising the issue of Kashmir in the report It is a sad thing. The atmosphere is normal in Kashmir, so the government is taking this step. Strict steps were taken in Kashmir for a month and the situation has been normalized and the situation is constantly recovering. If the government is anywhere in the country If you are suppressing democratic movements, then you give an example of this. “

There are demonstrations against CAA in many Indian cities. Read More

Last year, a case of tapping of phones of some Indians through Pegasus spyware was also revealed and many people raised serious questions about tapping.

This index is based on five categories: Election process and pluralism, government functioning, political participation, political culture and civil liberties. Countries are classified into four types of governance based on their total scores. Full democracy scoring more than 8 points, flawed democracy more than 6 but less than 8 or 8 points, hybrid governance more than 4 but 6 or less than 6 and autocratic rule with 4 or less. India is included in a “flawed democracy”.

At the same time, Pakistan ranks 108th in this index with a score of 4.25. China is at 153rd place with 2.26 score while Bangladesh is at 80th and Nepal at 92nd position. North Korea is ranked at the bottom of the 167th position. Read More

Shock to Hong Kong’s stability

Hong Kong’s protests plagued China’s eyes this year. They started with a bill through which fugitives from Hong Kong could be extradited to the mainland of China. The bill has been withdrawn but there is a continuation of demonstrations in support of democracy. China was also criticized worldwide for the use of force in demonstrations.

A girl’s performance in front of Sweden’s parliament sparked a major movement in 2019. Taking inspiration from Greta Thunberg, school children from all over the world took out the ‘Friday for Future’ march to protect the environment. There were more than four and a half thousand demonstrations in about 150 countries including Germany. In view of Greta’s campaign, many governments also declared a climate crisis.

There were large protests in India against the Citizenship Amendment Act in many parts. This law advocates giving citizenship to non-Muslim people from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan upon arrival in India. Critics say that this law discriminates on the basis of religion, which is not allowed in the Constitution. Many people died during demonstrations.

In the month of October, a large number of people in Iraq took to the streets against the government. During this time, 460 people were killed in the violence while more than 25 thousand were injured. Prime Minister Adil Abdul Mail resigned in view of the anger of people angry over corruption, unemployment and Iran’s influence on the country’s government. Many people today are describing the era of Iraqi dictator Saddam better.

There were big demonstrations against the government in Lebanon in October. People were angry about the increase in tax on gasoline, tobacco and even WhatsApp phone calls. Later demonstrations took the form of fury against government corruption and dwindling living standards. Despite the resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, the protesters refused to meet the interim prime minister. They are demanding changes on a large scale.

In Iran, in the month of November, when gasoline prices were increased by 50 per cent, people in many cities protested fiercely. Around two lakh people took to the streets in many cities. The government tried to suppress the protest by force. America says that more than a thousand people died during this period and this is the biggest violence in the country since the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Omar al-Bashir, who had been in power for decades after months of protests in the African country of Sudan, had to relinquish power in April. After this, the power struggle started in the country. Both the military and pro-democracy parties are trying to capture power. During this time dozens of people have died in the unrest spread in the country. In August, the two sides signed a constitutional declaration to form an interim government.

There were demonstrations in Chile about two months ago. Desperate people from the political and economic system of the country decided to take to the streets. The protesters are demanding major changes in the health, pension and education sectors. Demonstrations were also held in 2019 in several Latin American countries such as Bolivia, Honduras and Venezuela. In May, attempts were also made to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

In France, the Yellow West protests became a major headache for President Emanuel Marcion. These protests started in the last days of 2018 to protest against the proposed tax hike. Later, other people who were angry with the policies of the government also became part of them. But by December, the French people again appeared on the streets, this time against the pension reforms of Marx.

When the Spanish Supreme Court sentenced nine Catalan leaders to imprisonment, fresh demonstrations started in the provincial capital Barcelona. At one time the number of people participating in it reached five lakhs. During this period, incidents of violence were seen for six consecutive nights. During this time there was also a general strike, which had to stop traffic, car production and even football matches.

Originally published at https://www.mubahisa.in.