If democracy bows before mobocracy, the result is anarchy. Preserving public order and restraining such anarchy through the just enforcement of law is an essential function of rāja-nīti. As the Tamil proverb says:
aṭichchu vaḷarkkāda piḷḷaiyum; oṭichchu vaḷarkkāda murungaiyum onnukkum udavādu—
“An undisciplined child and an unpruned drumstick tree are both of little use.”
The Bible similarly teaches that a father who refuses to discipline his child ultimately harms him. In the classical Indian tradition, sāma (conciliation), dāna (concession), bheda (division), and daṇḍa (punishment) are all legitimate instruments of rāja-dharma for preserving justice and social order.
Obey the law, or face its sanctions.
However, Indian democracy should not be confused with theocracy. Classical Hindu political thought is centred on dharma rather than on the sovereign rule of a legislating God. This distinction will be discussed in greater detail later under the themes of Mobocracy, Democracy, Theocracy, and Theodicy.
Ashram
July 24, 2026
NB: Democracy and mobocracy, including popular protests at places such as Jantar Mantar, are people-centred political phenomena; they are not examples of biblical-style theocracy. Theocracy refers to a political system in which state authority is explicitly grounded in the revealed law of a single God and exercised in His name. By contrast, the concepts of rāja-dharma and daṇḍa illustrate that classical Hindu polity is dharma-centred and order-oriented rather than governed by the legislative authority of a personal God. For a fuller discussion, see my article, Daṇḍa Dharma and Theocracy :A Comparative Reflection on Hindu Polity and Biblical Models
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