India as “The mother of democracy”: From Sindhu-Saraswati civilization to present day
Author(s): Prasanta Sahoo, Anil Kumar Mohapatra, Lisa Sahoo and Sasmita Khandual
Abstract: Democracy is a dynamic concept and has a long tradition. Since the ancient times, there has been a narrative in the west that the idea of democracy originated in some of the ancient Greek city-states, mainly in Athens. But now India has seriously challenged the western narrative on the roots of democratic traditions and claimed that she is “the mother of democracy” and her democratic culture is much older than the Greeks. In the Indian sub-continent, democracy is an age-old concept going back to thousands of years. The democratic ethos of India state that democracy includes the core values of harmony, freedom of choices, freedom to hold multiple ideas, acceptability, equality, governance for the welfare of the people and inclusivity in a society. The Rigveda and the Atharvaveda, world’s earliest texts, mention about the existence of the representative entities like the Sabha (assembly of elders), Samiti (assembly of common folk) and Sansad (Parliament). India’s two great epics “the Ramayan” and “the Mahabharat” also state about the involvement of the people in decision-making process. In such a background, the present paper attempts to trace the historical evidences that enable India to claim herself not just “the oldest democracy” but also “the mother of democracy”.
Prasanta Sahoo, Anil Kumar Mohapatra, Lisa Sahoo, Sasmita Khandual. India as “The mother of democracy”: From Sindhu-Saraswati civilization to present day. Int J Political Sci Governance 2025;7(3):118-123. DOI: 10.33545/26646021.2025.v7.i3b.470
