Examine the liberal theory of State in contemporary politics. (UPSC CSE Mains 2022 - Political Science and International Relations, Paper 1)
- The Liberal perspective of the State is based on the philosophy of Liberalism, that vouches freedom, modernity and progress. Liberalism became associated with the doctrine that freedom of choice should be applied to matters as diverse as marriage, community, religion, economic and political affairs. It views that the world consists of free and equal individuals with natural rights. The concern of politics should be the defence of the rights of these individuals in a way that must enable them to realise their own capacities.
- The classical and neo-classical streams of liberal theory propounded the concept of a minimalist state i.e., a ''least governing state'' premised on the assumption of rational and free citizens.
- The origin of the liberal theory of state can be traced back to the social contract theorists - Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau - who challenged the divine theory of state and advanced a conception of state created by mutual consent among individuals for the purpose of self-preservation and social stability.
- Classical liberals such as John Locke and Adam Smith propounded that the primary role of state was to safeguard individual freedom and enable a societal system, conducive to their freedom. This school instilled utmost faith in the rationality and wisdom of individuals. The individuals were considered fully capable of determining one''s destiny. Hence, it urged for individual liberty defined as ''absence of restraints''.
- Similarly, neo-classical scholars such as Robert Nozick, Milton Friedman rejected the model of an interventionist welfare state for being inefficient and amounting to loss of individual initiative and encroachment of individual freedom. Hence, they advocated a roll back of the state, replacing it with a market-led model of development.
- According to liberal thinkers, the state has to play a minimalist role of maintaining law and order and has to be essentially a non-interfering state. The state is not imagined as an entity that regulates all social relations or private lives of its citizens but an arbiter of any possible disputes between free individuals or groups.
- This view exhibits unrelenting confidence in the capacity of the market to safeguard interests of individuals and society. The classical liberal belief had emerged as a response to the feudalism and mercantilism, whereas the neo-classical belief had the context of excessive state intervention during welfare regime. However, it needs to be noted that the model of least government runs the danger of deepening pre-existing inequalities and inadvertently promoting social Darwinism.
- The statement in question also portrays the liberal fear of a state that exercises too much control over the lives of its citizens, which may lead to the emergence of authoritarianism. It would be impossible for individuals to develop fully in such an autocratic or totalitarian set-up, nor would social progress be possible to achieve.
- Therefore, the liberal theory of the state eulogizes the least governing state as the best state.
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