The gorkhaland movement A study in the changing patterns of leadership

Abstract

In some respect the subject of political leadership appears to be outdated. The division of society into leaders and followers is rooted in a pre-democratic culture of difference and respect in which leaders knew best and the public needed to be led, mobilised or guided. Democratic pressures may not have removed the need for leaders, but they have certainly placed powerful constraints upon leadership, notably by making leaders publicly accountable and establishing institutional mechanisms through which they can be removed. In other respects, however, the politics of leadership has become increasingly significant. For instance, to some extent democracy itself has enhanced the importance of personality by forcing political leaders, in effect, to project themselves in the hope of gaining electoral support. The tendency has undoubtedly been strengthened by modern means of mass communication (especially television) which tend to emphasize personality rather than policies, and provide leaders with powerful weapons to manipulate their public images. Furthermore, as society becomes more complex and fragmented, people becomes increasingly dependent upon the leaders to guide, project a vision and impart a meaning and coherence to the world in which they live. newline