A Democracy Should Work for All

I was once again deeply troubled to read about the displacement of tribals by the Sardar Sarovar Dam in India. While I have read conflicting reports on the economic and environmental implications of the project, none support the dictatorial attitude adopted by the federal and state governments in chasing the tribal inhabitants off, often without adequate compensation or relocation benefits. People in cities cannot seek to justify such horrors in the name of development. It's the tragedy of a democracy that the middle-class and the moneyed, who don't care enough to participate in the electoral process in substantial numbers, dictate so much of our economics, while the poor are misled by false issues to distract them from the real tragedies of governance.