Question

How does a cooperative society exemplify democracy and secularism? Explain.

Answer 1

In a cooperative society, management is in the hands of a managing committee elected by the members of the society. The elections in such societies are governed by the principle of ‘one member, one vote’. This implies that all members have equal voting rights irrespective of the amount of capital they have contributed to the society. This principle prevents the dominance of the richer members (who may own a higher number of shares) in the decision-making process. Thus, as in a democracy, a cooperative society treats all its members equally and provides equal rights to its members. Moreover, there is no discrimination among the members on the basis of their religion, caste or sex. In addition, the members are free to elect the members of the managing committee of their choice. Therefore, a cooperative society exemplifies a secularist system.