{"id":1014,"date":"2026-08-09T18:45:57","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T13:15:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/pyq\/success-of-contemporary-democracies-lies-in-the-state-limiting-upsc-psir-2023-0608\/"},"modified":"2026-08-09T21:56:14","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T16:26:14","slug":"success-of-contemporary-democracies-lies-in-the-state-limiting-upsc-psir-2023-0608","status":"publish","type":"psir_pyq","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/psir-pyq\/success-of-contemporary-democracies-lies-in-the-state-limiting-upsc-psir-2023-0608\/","title":{"rendered":"Success of contemporary democracies lies in the State limiting its own power. Explain."},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"pq-flow\">\n<div class=\"pq-flow-h\">Flow snapshot <em>&mdash; how the answer moves<\/em><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p1\"><span>Intro routes<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">democracy authorises power through consent \u2192 but contemporary success needs that power held within limits \u2192 Locke: government protects rights, bound by law, &quot;where law ends, tyranny begins&quot; restraint, not the mandate alone, is the real test \u2192 self-limitation = the harder half of democracy<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p2\"><span>Body flow<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">authorise vs restrain (democracy authorises \/ constitutionalism restrains, both needed) \u2192 Zakaria: constitutionalism distinct, elections outrunning restraint \u2192 oppressive majority \u2192 Madison: oblige government to control itself \u2192 rule of law: government under law, minorities\/dissenters protected \u2192 Diamond: &quot;steel frame&quot; against elected autocrats \u2192 separation of powers (Montesquieu): branches limit each other \u2192 pluralism (Dahl): power dispersed across press, opposition, civil society<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p3\"><span>Counter-view<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">self-limitation # self-weakening \u2192 Bartels: backsliding is elite-driven loosening of self-limits \u2192 Holmes: restraining arbitrary power raises state capacity \u2192 Ambedkar: political democracy must rest on social &amp; economic democracy \u2192 limit arbitrary power, not positive purpose<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-fb\">\n<div class=\"pq-pill p4\"><span>Conclusion routes<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"pq-ft\">state binds itself by law, divides authority, accepts plural checks \u2192 majorities rule without tyranny limited power and effective power are not opposites \u2192 the democracies that endure are those that restrain themselves<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"pyq_year":[34],"pyq_marks":[31],"pyq_topic":[51],"pyq_paper":[33],"class_list":["post-1014","psir_pyq","type-psir_pyq","status-publish","hentry","pyq_year-34","pyq_marks-20-marks","pyq_topic-democracy","pyq_paper-paper-1"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1014","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/psir_pyq"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1014\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2436,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/psir_pyq\/1014\/revisions\/2436"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1014"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"pyq_year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_year?post=1014"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_marks","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_marks?post=1014"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_topic?post=1014"},{"taxonomy":"pyq_paper","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/psir\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pyq_paper?post=1014"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}