There is a recent survey conducted by Pew Research Centre amongst 24 countries, which says that 2/3rd of Indians express support for autocratic or military rule, making it the leading country in this regard.
Rising Support for Authoritarianism and Military Rule
Aiming to gauge public sentiment towards democracy and governance, 30,861 individuals across 24 countries were surveyed between the time period of February 20, 2023, and May 22, 2023.
The report was later published on February 28, 2024. The highlight of the study was the rise in favor of rule by a “strong leader” without judicial or legislative oversight in India.
As compared to 2017’s 55%, the number of people who supported this form of governance increased to 67% in 2023. Notably, India also stood out as the country with strongest support for autocratic style of leadership, which was later followed by Indonesia with more than 50% preferring this style and then later followed by Mexico and Kenya with equal to 50%.
The survey also reveals that 72% of Indian participants endorsed military rule, out of which 43% stated it to be very good and 29% calling it somewhat good. Next to India is Indonesia when it comes to preference for military rule.
What is also noteworthy, is that other than India, Indonesia, and Mexico, military rule was least preferred form of government in other countries.
From Autocracy to Technocracy
While autocratic governance preference saw a surge, representative democracy preference took a dip. As compared to 2017’s 44%, only 36% in 2023 considered it very good. 79% of Indian respondents still hold a positive view towards representative democracy, calling it “somewhat good”.
Up from 2017’s 65%, the survey revealed a growing preference for technocratic government to 82%. In addition to this, there is increasing support for direct democracy as well as women inclusion in politicians in policymaking processes among Indian respondents.
Despite all the above, a majority of 72% of Indians remain satisfied with the current democratic system in the country, which further illustrates a complex attitude towards governance and democracy among the populace.
