Kathmandu— Senior Congress leader Manish Tewari on Sunday criticized the current state of Indian democracy, stating that representative institutions are now 'all but redundant' and the country operates under a two-horse system with an arbitrary executive and an independent judiciary. He called for a fundamental redesign of the constitutional structure to address legislative paralysis.

Criticizing Democratic Institutions

Tewari, who is also a Lok Sabha MP from Congress, expressed his concerns on X, stating that India's representative institutions no longer serve their intended purpose. He argued that the country has transformed into a two-horse system where an arbitrary executive and a judiciary that appoints its own judges dominate the political landscape.

Tewari pointed out that Parliament and state legislatures have become 'gladiatorial arenas' focused on seizing executive power rather than fulfilling their constitutional duties.

Illustrating Legislative Paralysis

To illustrate his point, Tewari shared a comparative analysis of the working days of the Lok Sabha. He noted that while the first Lok Sabha (1952-57) met for 135 days, the most recent one, the 17th Lok Sabha, only convened for 55 days, with many disruptions.

Tewari emphasized that if Parliament is to perform its constitutionally mandated duties again, the Indian democratic system must be fundamentally redesigned.

(With inputs from ANI)

Originally published on abcnews.com.np.