Kathmandu: Congress MP and former diplomat Shashi Tharoor on Thursday praised India’s democratic resilience, stating that the “Indian system bent, didn’t break” in the face of recent Gen Z protests.
Speaking at the NDTV World Anviksha Summit here, Tharoor offered a detailed comparison of how political systems across South Asia responded to youth-led agitations over the past decade.
He noted that six major South Asian countries have witnessed significant protests by their young populations in recent years.
“Starting with Myanmar protests in 2012, we then saw young people hitting the streets in Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal and recently in India,” he said. He described these movements as manifestations of Gen Z anger in varying forms.
The key difference, according to Tharoor, lay in the nature of the political systems and the way establishments handled the unrest.
“The difference among them is of the political systems in these countries and how the political establishment responded and dealt with them,” he observed.
He elaborated on the outcomes in each case. In Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, the existing rulers were unable to manage the situation and had to flee, paving the way for new leadership. Nepal also experienced a regime change, though it differed from the experiences of Sri Lanka and Bangladesh; fresh elections were held, and a new government assumed office.
In Pakistan, the military intervened and installed what Tharoor termed a “puppet government”.
Myanmar, meanwhile, saw a full military takeover.
India, Tharoor argued, stood apart due to the inherent strength of its democratic framework. He pointed to a “self-correcting mechanism in the Indian political system” that ensured the voices of Gen Z protesters were heard.
“In India, however, the mechanism is self-correcting. There is a democratic system which adapted itself to the new reality with astonishing speed,” he said.
Because of a functioning and robust democratic setup, the government was compelled to respond to the demands of the young protesters.
Tharoor’s remarks underscored his view that India’s institutional flexibility and democratic processes allowed it to absorb pressure without collapsing, in contrast to the more dramatic political upheavals seen in neighbouring countries. The comments form part of a broader discussion at the summit on political systems in South Asia, youth discontent, and the varying trajectories of democratic resilience in the region.
(IANS)
