‘Left-Wing’ and ‘Right-Wing’ Politics: Imagine 4 Quadrants Not a Line

Many a times we hear and read these phrases on news debates, politicians’ speech, Twitter handles and on rare occasions, arguments on road-side bettle shops! But, the left-right binary ideology is not how our government, politics and policies are shaped.

The concept of ‘left’ and ‘right’ were coined during the French Revolution in late 18th Century, where those who sat on the left of the chair of parliamentary president opposed the monarchy & supported the revolution while those who sat on the right were supportive of the institutions of the monarchy.

In the present 21st Century, there are only a handful monarchies. Most of the countries have adopted some form of democracy. So, what do the terms ‘left’ and ‘right’ represent in modern democracies?

In simple economic terms, left-wing symbolizes pro-poor (welfare-oriented; demand government subsidies) politics whereas right-wing stands for pro-business (free-market; limited government) politics.

But, then this definition does not capture the cultural/social factors. For example, left is also assumed to be liberal/progressive and right traditionalist/conservative. But, are all left-wing people liberals or right-wing conservative? No.

For better understanding, imagine the political spectrum in 4 quadrants.

The simple economic definition of left (pro-poor) and right (pro-business) lies on the X-axis. In the Y-axis, Government Authority represents limited political freedoms (curbing freedom of thought, speech and action). In contrast, Liberty maximises political freedom and reduces Government intervention in citizens’ personal life.

If we apply this framework in understanding real-world political views, the CPI in Kerala with economic left and somewhat political liberal policies can be termed a “Democratic Socialist” government. Mao’s China, on the other hand, will fall under “communism”— economic left but politically authoritative.

Nazi Germany was a Fascist state — authoritative and pro-business. A good example of present day fascist state are Middle East countries, e.g. Saudi Arabia. Whereas most of the modern developed countries in the West would fall under Free-Market Liberalism (economic right and politically liberal).

So, where do BJP and INC belong? Nehru’s INC was definitely a left-liberal party — so, democratic socialism. Modi’s BJP is different from Vajpayee’s BJP. The latter was tilting towards Free-Market liberalism while the former (with support to beef ban and promoting Hindu mythology as history) is tilting towards neoconservatism. But, then again, Modi Government boast of policymakers such as Sanjeev Sanyal, the Principal Economic Advisor to the Government of India, who clearly adheres to free-market liberalism.

So, next time when somebody is labeled as a ‘leftist’, ask whether left-liberal (like Nehru) or left-authoritative (like Mao).

Similarly, ask a right-wing person whether he/she is right-conservative (like Modi) or right-liberal (like Vajpayee or Dr. JP).