ABSTRACT
The question about life after democracy is addressed to those who already live in democracies, or in countries that pretend to be democracies. It is meant to suggest that the system of representative democracy—too much representation, too little democracy—needs some structural adjustment. It shows how the cleverly layered mathematics of electoral democracy can turn a tiny minority into a thumping mandate. Reassured by the sort of "constructive" collaboration, the consensus between political parties, few were more enthusiastic about the elections than some of the major corporate houses. They seem to have realized that a democratic mandate can legitimize their pillaging in a way that nothing else can. The hoary institutions of Indian democracy—the judiciary, the police, the "free" press, and, of course, elections—far from working as a system of checks and balances, quite often do the opposite.
