Civil Democratic Movement

Civil Democratic Movement

• The origins of the democratic rights movement trace back to the late 1960s, a time marked by political instability, as tensions between the ruling class and the people intensified, leading to signs of widespread revolt.

• The growing arbitrary actions of the state served as the primary catalyst for the movement.

• The declaration of Emergency, which suspended the fundamental freedoms outlined in Part III of the Constitution, was a significant factor in the rise of the civil liberties movement.

• In response, two major organizations based in Delhi, the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) and the People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR), began advocating for people’s democratic rights.

These organizations continue to fight for the vulnerable and marginalized, representing their causes in the judiciary

Limitations of these Movements

• Despite their efforts, the tangible impact of these movements on public policy has been limited. One reason for this is that many contemporary movements focus on single issues, often representing just one section of society, making it easier to disregard their demands.

• Democratic politics, however, requires broad alliances of various disadvantaged groups, which these movements have struggled to form.

• While political parties should bring together diverse interests, they too have failed to address the concerns of marginalized groups, while these movements have operated in a narrow, restrictive manner.

• The disconnect between popular movements and political parties has grown over the years, leading to a political vacuum, which has become a significant issue in Indian politics.

Lessons from Popular Movements

• The history of these movements offers valuable insights into the nature of democratic politics. These movements arose to address flaws in party politics and should be seen as an essential part of India’s democracy.

• They represented new social groups whose economic and social concerns were overlooked in electoral politics.

• By ensuring the representation of diverse groups, popular movements helped reduce social conflicts and the sense of alienation that these groups felt toward democracy.

These movements introduced new forms of active participation, thereby broadening the concept of participation in Indian democracy

Points To Remember

According to Parth Mukherji, social movements are accumulative, alternative and transformative in nature.

• Environmental Movements:

• Chipko Movement, Uttarakhand. Women’s active participation in the Chipko agitation

Narmada Bachao Andolan, launched in the Narmada Valley of central India in the early 80s

• Silent Valley Movement in the Palakkad district of Kerala. In 1985 PM Rajiv Gandhi inaugurated Silent Valley National Park and the park was designated as the core area of Nilgiris Biosphere Reserve.

• Fisheries Movement: The fishermen came together on a national level platform as a National Fish workers Forum (NFF).

• Party-based movements:

• Popular movements may take form of social or political movements.

• Independent social movements like the anti-caste movement, the kisan sabhas and the trade union movement.

• Peasants and agricultural labourers in parts of Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar and adjoining areas continued their agitations under the leadership of the Marxist-Leninist workers; who were known as the Naxalites.

• The peasants’ and the workers’ movements mainly focussed on issues of economic injustice and inequality.

• Non-Party Movements:

• Failure of the Janata experiment

• Persistence of poverty and inequalities on a large scale.

• A sense of injustice and deprivation among different groups.

• The middle-class young activists launched service organisations and constructive programmes among the rural poor.

• Most of these groups believed in politics and wanted to participate in it, but not through political parties. Hence, these organisations were called ‘non-party’ political formations.

• Dalit Movement:

• The term “Dalit” encompasses the communities known as ex-untouchables and tribals, officially termed Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively.

• Ghanshyam Shah classified Dalit Movement into Reformative and Alternative movement.

• The Bhopal Declaration (2002) adopted unanimously a new 21-point Action Agenda for Dalits for the 21st century:

• SC & ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989.

• Dalit panthers, a militant organisation of the Dalit youth, was formed in Maharashtra in 1972.

• Agrarian Struggles Since Independence:

• Telangana Peasant Struggle:

• The Communist Party of India took up these issues as the basis for a peasant’s struggle against feudalism in the period 1946-48.

• The Jagirdari Abolition Regulation was laid down in 1949, and the Hyderabad Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act was passed in 1950.

• The Srikakulam Peasant Uprising:

• The uprising occurred in 1967–1970, in regions of Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh, India. The Naxalbari uprising inspired the upsurge.

• Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU):

• Demand for higher government floor prices for sugarcane and wheat.

• Abolition of restrictions on the inter-state movement of farm produce.

• Guaranteed supply of electricity at reasonable rates Waiving of repayments due on loans to farmers.

• The provision of a government pension for farmers.

• Shetkari Sanghatana of Maharashtra declared the farmers’ movement as a war of Bharat (symbolising the rural, agrarian sector) against forces of India (urban industrial sector).

Anti-Arrack Movement: Prohibition on the sale of arrack in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh

• OBC Movements:

• Kaka Kalelkar Commission,1956

• Mandal Commission, 1980

• New Farmers Movement:

• Sharad Joshi articulated the ideology of the movement in terms of India V/s Bharat, industrial V/s rural.

• They focused mainly on the demands of remunerative prices for agricultural produce and lowering or elimination of government dues such as canal water charges, electricity charges, interest rates and principal of loans, etc.

• Women’s Movement:

• Three prominent women’s organizations were All India Women’s Conference (AIWC), National Federation of Indian Women (1954) and All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA since 1981)

Civil Democratic Movement:

Originated In the late 1960s.

Two major Delhi-based organisations, namely the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) & People’s Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) started working for people’s democratic rights