236 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
a master or whether he died as a common man sometimes does of common cold. As a matter of fact Ranade was not troubled by any regrets. So far as record goes Ranade does not seem to be conscious of any act or event about which he had any regrets. He died a happy and a peaceful death. But it is worth-while asking could Ranade have any regrets if he came to life today ? I am sure there is one matter over which he will feel extremely grieved— namely the present condition of the Liberal Party in India.
What is the present position of the Liberal Party in India ? The Liberal Party is a casualty. Indeed this is a very mild expression. The Liberals are “the contemptibles” of Indian politics. To use the language of Norton used in another connection they are disowned by the people, unowned by the Government, having the virtues of neither, but possessing the vices of both. There was a time when the Liberal Party was the rival of the Congress. Today the relation of the Liberal Party to the Congress is that of a dog to his master. Occasionally the dog barks at his master but for the most part of his life he is content to follow him. What is the Liberal Party if not the tail of the Congress ? Many are asking, why do not the Liberals merge in the Congress—so useless has their existence become. How can Ranade help not regretting the collapse of the Liberal Party ? How can any Indian help regretting it ?
The collapse of the Liberal Party is a tragedy to the Liberals. But it is really a disaster to the country. The existence of a party is so essential to a popular Government that it is impossible to conceive the possibility of getting on without it. As an eminent American historian says :
“It is easier to imagine the demolition of any part of our constitutional organization, the submersion of a large part of what the constitution describes, than to imagine our getting on without political combinations : they are our vital institutions.”
Indeed to attempt to govern a country by the mass of voters without the control and discipline of a Party is, to use the language of James Bryce :
“Like attempting to manage a rail-board by the votes of uniformed share holders, or to lay the course of a sailing ship by the votes of the passengers.”
It is undeniable that a party is an essential adjunct to Popular Government. But it is equally undeniable that the rule of a single party is fatal to Popular Government. In fact it is a negation of Popular Government. The case of Germany and Italy furnish the most cogent evidence on this point. Instead of taking a warning from the totalitarian States we are taking them as models to copy. The one party system is being hailed in this country in the name of national solidarity. Those who are doing so are failing to take note of the possibilities of tyranny as well as the possibilities of misdirection of public affairs which is inherent in the one party Government. To have Popular