The political leaders concede that rural India is not shining. Rural India can shine only if true democracy, Gram Swaraj is instituted, as advocated by Gandhi, and practised in the best democracies such as the Swiss.

The logic of democracy is that the sovereign people retain resources at the local level — village and city coordinated by the district — to handle all local matters such as administration of justice, police, education healthcare, land, water systems and forests. They ensure that their elected and appointed servants are directly accountable to them and not through a higher level functionary. They institute their sovereign rights to (1) all public information except that restricted by society in public interest, (2) consultation through public hearings on all projects above a stipulated size, (3) participation through participatory councils, and (4) decision-making through referendum, the supreme sovereign rights of the people intrinsic to democracy. Derived from elementary logic, this can be said to be the basic structure of universal democracy.

A group of committed citizens coordinated by Shri Sansar Chandra, an associate of People First, has promoted a "Change of System Alliance" and registered it with the Election Commission. The aim of the Alliance is to sponsor 50 to 100 candidates in the forthcoming elections. Its mission is to replace the present anti-people political system based on exploitative colonial institutions by true democracy, Gandhi’s Gram Swaraj with empowered villages and urban neighbourhoods (mohallas) coordinated by empowered district governments. The state will have no jurisdiction over local matters.

The Alliance will demand that an independent Sovereign Rights Commission with authority to direct referendums except on issues fundamental to democracy or the integrity of the nation be instituted. Superior to the royal priest of bygone days, more like Gandhi, such a commission will function as the non-corruptible conscience keeper of the state, based on the values to the society as a whole. It will prepare a proposed Constitution based on the wishes expressed by the people, and refer the present versus proposed Constitution to the people through referendum. The people will clearly vote for the latter. The commission will then authenticate it this time truly in the name of people as the supreme law of India. To facilitate the process People First has already prepared a proposed "Constitution for Free Bharat (India), 2003" and displayed it on its website. The commission can, based on public consultations, refine it before putting it to referendum.

Democracy in USA is similar except that it has few villages since the European settlers destroyed the villages of the indigenous people and usurped their lands to create mammoth holdings. Such abuse of environmental resources led to unbridled capitalism. In Gandhi’s Gram Swaraj, the village parliament consisting of all adult men and women is the supreme authority. Women were thus franchised in India several thousand years ago whereas they got enfranchised in the West only in this century. The village parliament elects the village councillors through secret ballot for one year, not five, and can remove them any time for misconduct through simple majority. It thus functions as direct democracy!

While allotting land to industry, the village parliament monitors that it produces goods and services useful to society, creates dignified employment, and generates wealth for expansion, and for philanthropy, but not for ostentatious consumption. Gandhi described it as "industry in trusteeship of society". This nurtures an egalitarian economic system, truly capitalism with a human face. The whole of India will truly shine under such an economic system.

Shri PA Sangma once made a call for a second freedom struggle. He is supportive of the campaign. The Alliance hopes to succeed in bringing the issues in wide public and media debate, expose the present exploitative system, and create nation-wide awareness for political reforms through the referendum process.

Opening the economy to the global market has led to generation of vulgar wealth with a few, alongside abject poverty amongst the vast majority in urban slums and villages. Unless political reforms are instituted soon, this will lead to anarchy-like conditions. The methods adopted by violent movements such as ULFA, NAXAL & PWG may be wrong but their demand for local control over local resources is right. Once true democracy is instituted, these educated youth will join the mainstream for nation building. The whole of India will then sparkle.

Slogans of the Campaign
Rakshasa Raj samapt karo, Gram Swaraj hamara adhikar,
Ram Raj sthapit karo Janmat Sangraha is ka dwar