Citizens as watchdogs
More than two thousand years ago the Greek philosopher Socrates gave a blunt warning, recorded by Plato in The Republic (around 380 BCE). People who refuse to take any part in ruling pay a price for it, and the worst price is being governed by someone worse than themselves.
That warning still fits everyday life in India. Picture a road in your neighbourhood that has been dug up for months, with traffic jammed and people getting hurt. Fixing it is the government's job, yet often nothing moves until the people who use the road speak up, ask questions and keep asking.
Citizens are the people a government exists to serve. They are also the people best placed to notice when it fails them. A citizen who knows the channels for complaint, information and pressure can push public institutions to do their work properly. A citizen who stays silent leaves those decisions to others, which is exactly the risk Socrates described.
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