Since Independence, with the rare exception of the 1975–1977 Emergency, India has seldom faced such a pronounced decline as today in the core elements of governance: transparency, accountability and the accessibility of elected officials. Without these three principles, electoral democracy risks turning into legalised autocracy. Voting initiates the democratic process, but effective institutions, devoted public service, and responsiveness to citizens' needs between elections, are what sustain it.

No leader embodies a perfect democratic ideal. As the careers of figures like Abraham Lincoln and Jawaharlal Nehru show, democracy is inherently flawed and perpetually a work in progress. India's framers anticipated this vulnerability, warning that a nation could easily preserve the outer forms of democracy — elections, legislatures, Constitutional procedures — while discarding its spirit. Dr B R Ambedkar famously noted that democracy in India was merely a thin topsoil over an undemocratic social fabric, emphasising that a constitution's strength depends entirely on those who administer it. Similarly, Nehru often voiced frustration over electoral politics, observing that campaigns frequently prioritise rhetoric and partisan conflict over substantive issues.

Consequently, winning an election is not the fulfilment of democratic duty, but its beginning. Leaders must be evaluated by their actions in office rather than their language while in opposition.

Within Kerala’s modern political history, few figures have embodied this commitment to democracy and public service as consistently as Oommen Chandy (whom I used, fondly, to call "O C Chettan", or elder brother), whose 83rd birthday we mark today (October 31). Throughout his career, he treated political power as a practical instrument for socio-economic development, grounding his administration in direct accessibility, openness, and institutional accountability.  

What made Oommen Chandy exceptional was not merely the longevity of his political career, remarkable though that was in spanning more than half a century of elective office, but the extraordinary consistency with which he inhabited the role of a public servant. In 2020, three years before his passing in July 2023, he marked his fiftieth year as a legislator, a stunning half-century in public life that saw him serve twice as Chief Minister, hold important ministerial portfolios including Home, Finance and Labour, and occupy the key position of Leader of the Opposition. He had, by then, won eleven consecutive elections from Puthuppally, his home turf, establishing a record as Kerala’s longest-serving legislator and eclipsing the earlier mark set by K M Mani. In total, he served more than 19,000 days........

© Mathrubhumi English