Hesitation in using coercion is an Indian tradition : Prof. Rajiv Lochan

Hyderabad, Nov 22: ‘Hesitation in using coercion is a uniquely Indian tradition, because we share a strong sense of common destiny. We were driven a strong sense of understanding that in India everyone would be equal and could expect equality in return. We are driven by a sense of idealism having driven away the foreign yokes, said Prof. Rajiv Lochan, Professor of History, Punjab University while delivering a special lecture yesterday at Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU). Prof. Syed Ainul Hasan, Vice-Chancellor, MANUU presided over.

The lecture “Indic Roots of Indian Democracy – Creating a Democracy, Indian Style” was organized by UGC-Human Resource Development Centre (HRDC) of MANUU.

Continuing his lecture, Prof. Lochan said “When we read history we tend not to read it entirely and we have few professional historians. Our post-Independence history starts with our constitution. The modern constitution of India is marked by a combination of civilizational values, the desire for consensus and dislike of coercion. This is further combined with robust institutional framework to underpin the values’, he added.

Prof. Lochan said, ‘We needed the constitution because there was a fundamental belief that a good society is one which is ruled based. And these rules are clearly articulated and would not be based on a religious dictum, he elaborated. ‘We have framed the constitution based on the principles that adult franchise would be made available to all including the illiterate, and that the rights of religious and linguistic minorities would be protected’, he said.

“In the first elections in democratic India, 30 million women entered their names in the electoral list. That’s empowerment of the people. The constitutional debates involved 49 million man hours, and 60% of the Muslims members of the Constituent Assembly refused to join Pakistan” Prof. Rajiv Lochan pointed out.

Prof. Ainul Hasan added that ‘Indian constitution was rule based, process based and involved many stakeholders’.

Earlier, Prof. Saneem Fatima, Director, UGC-HRDC introduced the guest speaker. Other dignitaries also attended the lecture.

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