Now Reading: Five Conditions That Make Resistance Politically Effective
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Five Conditions That Make Resistance Politically Effective
Resistance is central to democratic life, argues National Herald India columnist Shailendra Chauhani. Drawing on India’s freedom struggle, the article says effective resistance requires breadth, unity, discipline, continuity and legitimacy. Gandhi’s campaigns…
The Story in Brief
Resistance is central to democratic life, argues National Herald India columnist Shailendra Chauhani. Drawing on India’s freedom struggle, the article says effective resistance requires breadth, unity, discipline, continuity and legitimacy. Gandhi’s campaigns made ordinary citizens part of political action through non-cooperation, boycotts, swadeshi and civil disobedience. Revolutionary figures such as Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad also challenged colonial rule and inspired young people, but armed action alone lacked the mass base needed to force British withdrawal.
The article cites research by Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan, including the NAVCO 2.1 dataset covering 389 campaigns from 1945 to 2013. It finds non-violent movements often draw wider participation and cause fewer deaths, though their success rate fell after 2001. Large crowds, the article says, matter only when sustained action targets the systems that keep power functioning.
The Indian Opinion
Resistance is often reduced to either heroic street politics or quiet constitutionalism. Both are lazy readings. The freedom struggle used several methods, while non-violence itself involved organised pressure, boycotts and refusal to cooperate. The opposite exaggeration is that numbers alone can defeat power. A one-day crowd may create headlines without changing institutions. The useful test is harder: does a movement sustain participation across social groups, maintain discipline and disrupt the administration or legitimacy it opposes?
Source: nationalheraldindia.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
