External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has expressed optimism over the direction of India’s democracy and stressed that India’s democracy has delivered. He spoke about how elections are conducted in India, mentioning recent elections in Delhi and the parliamentary elections held in 2024.
While participating in a panel discussion on ‘Live to Vote Another Day: Fortifying Democratic Resilience’ at the Munich Security Conference alongside Norway’s Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, US Senator Elissa Slotkin, and Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski on Friday, Jaishankar stated that he disagrees with the view that democracy is in trouble globally and highlighted India’s democratic progress.
When asked about his views on Western democracy, Jaishankar responded, “Well before I do that, I appeared to be an optimist in what is relatively a pessimistic panel, if not room. I will begin by sticking up my finger and don’t take it badly, it is the index finger. This, the mark you see on my nail, is a mark of a person who has just voted. We just had an election in my state just over. Last year, we had a national election. In Indian elections, roughly two-thirds of the eligible voters vote. At the national elections, the electorate of about 900 million, about 700 million voted. We count the votes in a single day.”
“Nobody disputes the result after it’s announced and by the way, from the time we started voting in the modern era, 20 per cent of people more vote today than they did decades ago. So, the first message is that somehow democracy is in trouble globally, worldwide, I am sorry, I have to differ with it. I mean, right now, we are living well. We are voting well. We are optimistic about the direction of our democracy and for us, democracy has actually delivered,” he added.
Jaishankar emphasized that India is a democratic society that provides nutrition support to 800 million people. He noted that while democracy might not function well in certain regions, it should not be assumed to be a universal problem.
External Affairs Minister said, “Senator, you said that democracy doesn’t put food on your table. Actually, in my part of the world, it does because it actually, today, since we are a democratic society, we give nutrition support, and food to 800 million people and for whom that is a matter of how healthy they are and how full their stomachs are. So, the point I want to make is, different parts of the world are going through different conversations. Please do not assume that this is a kind of universal phenomenon; it is not.”
“There are parts where it is working well, maybe there are parts where it is not, and the parts where it is not, I think people need to have honest conversations about why it is not. But I would argue that to an extent, as someone dispassionately viewing it, which was your question, there are some problems, a lot of them are accumulated problems of the model of globalization that we have followed for the last 25-30 years. I think a lot of chickens have come home to roost. So yes, there are issues, but from our point of view today, not all over the world. Let’s not make that universal,” he added.
In a post on X, Jaishankar wrote, “Started the #MSC2025 with a panel on ‘Live to Vote Another Day: Fortifying Democratic Resilience’. Joined PM @jonasgahrstore, @ElissaSlotkin and @trzaskowski_. Highlighted India as a democracy that delivers. Differed with the prevailing political pessimism. Spoke my mind on foreign interference.”
Jaishankar noted that India chose a democratic model after independence because the nation had a fundamentally consultative, pluralistic society. He pointed out that there was a time when the West treated democracy as an exclusive Western characteristic. He suggested that many nations in the Global South may find India’s democratic experience more applicable to their societies than those of Western nations.
Jaishankar highlighted that India has remained committed to the democratic model despite facing challenges. He emphasized that if the West wants democracy to prevail, it must embrace successful democratic models beyond its own borders.
Asked whether nations in the Global South still aspire to a democratic system, Jaishankar responded, “Look, to an extent, all big countries are unique. But, we would certainly hope, I mean to the extent that we think of democracy as a universal aspiration—ideally a reality, but at least an aspiration—in large part because India chose a democratic model after independence. It did so because we had fundamentally a consultative, pluralistic society. Now, there was a time—and I would have to say this in all honesty—when the West treated democracy as a Western characteristic and supported non-democratic forces in the Global South. It still does. I mean, in many cases, I can point to some very recent ones where everything that you say you value at home, you don’t practice abroad. So, I do think the rest of the Global South will view the successes, shortcomings, and responses of other countries.”
“They will ask themselves which ones of them they relate to. I would argue in many ways that India, because it has historically been an open society, one very much linked with the world, is more relatable to many countries in the Global South than perhaps others. So, I do think that in our progress as a democracy, the fact that for all the challenges we have had, even at a low income, we have stayed true to the democratic model is significant. When you look at our part of the world, we are pretty much the only country that has done that. So, I think this is something the West should look at because if you do want democracy eventually to prevail, it is important that the West also embraces the successful models outside the West,” he added.
The 61st Munich Security Conference (MSC) is being held in Munich, Germany, from February 14-16. MSC 2025 offers an unparalleled platform for high-level debates on the key foreign and security policy challenges of our time.