Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah warned that legislatures worldwide threat turning into subservient to dictators reasonably than serving as arenas of democratic dialogue, as he recognized fanaticism as democracy’s major enemy on the eleventh Commonwealth Parliamentary Affiliation India Area Convention in Bengaluru on Thursday.
Talking on the inauguration ceremony on the Vidhana Soudha, Siddaramaiah painted a stark image of democracy beneath siege globally. “Hole fanaticism creates dictators who silence dissent, the phenomena which we’re seeing worldwide. In such moments, legislatures threat submission to a dictator reasonably than serving as arenas of dialogue,” he acknowledged, highlighting what he termed the primary main risk to democratic establishments.
The chief minister recognized three vital enemies of democracy that require pressing consideration. Past fanaticism creating dictatorial tendencies, he warned towards the “politics of division and id” the place caste, faith, or language are weaponised for political achieve. “When caste, faith, or language are weaponised for political achieve, legislatures threat turning into arenas of exclusion reasonably than inclusion,” he noticed.
Siddaramaiah additionally criticised the rising affect of “social Darwinism” – the assumption that solely the strongest should thrive – calling it a corrosive pressure that undermines democracy’s promise of equality.
“A real republic is judged not by the way it empowers the highly effective, however by the way it uplifts the weakest,” he emphasised.
The third main risk, in response to the chief minister, is the erosion of democratic tradition itself.
“When public debate turns into hostility, when legislatures turn into arenas of disruption reasonably than deliberation, the tradition of democracy itself begins to decay,” he warned, echoing issues concerning the deteriorating high quality of parliamentary discourse.
Addressing modern challenges, Siddaramaiah highlighted the hazards of misinformation.
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“In immediately’s world, the rise of a post-truth tradition, the place feelings usually outweigh information, and misinformation spreads quicker than motive, poses a grave hazard to democracy. Legislatures should reclaim the house of reality, proof, and rational debate,” he mentioned.
Drawing from Karnataka’s wealthy democratic heritage, the chief minister referred to the Twelfth-century Anubhava Mantapa, established by Basavanna, as a “true parliament of the folks” the place dialogue and equality flourished with out hierarchy.