Democracy’s superior virtue lies in the fact that it calls into activity
Answer & explanation
Answer: (a) the intelligence and character of ordinary men and women.
Democracy's special strength is that it draws ordinary citizens into public life and makes use of their judgement and character. Its quality depends on how widely people take part, not on a leader, a party cadre or a stronger executive.
- ✓ (a) Democracy rests on participation by ordinary people. NCERT says the quality of democracy depends on the degree of public participation.
- ✗ (b) Strengthening executive leadership is about how a government is run. It is not what makes democracy special, and democracy also stresses accountability of the executive.
- ✗ (c) Relying on a single superior individual is the opposite of democratic participation by many.
- ✗ (d) Party workers are only one part of political life. Democracy's virtue is that it involves all citizens, not a small dedicated band.
Remember · The virtue of democracy is participation: it draws on the intelligence and character of ordinary men and women, not on one leader or a small group.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 10 Democratic Politics – II, Ch 4 (practise this chapter) · Class 11 Indian Constitution at Work, Ch 8 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 10 · Democratic Politics – II, Chapter 4 “The quality of democracy depends on the degree of public participation. It is difficult to reform politics if ordinary citizens do not take part in it and simply criticise it from the outside.”
- NCERT Class 11 · Indian Constitution at Work, Chapter 8 “Democracy is about meaningful participation. It is also about accountability.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2017, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·