PSIR Test 02 Model Answers

(1) ‘Where there is no common power, there is no law, where no law, no justice’ –
Hobbes.
• Hobbes, one of the greatest political philosophers, belonged to the ‘social contract’
tradition, which proposes contractual origin of state. In this statement, Hobbes has
referred to condition of pre-state or state of nature in his book ‘Leviathan’ (1651).
• In Leviathan, Hobbes produced a specific way of interpretation of ‘state of nature’ in
order to provide a substantial justification for on absolute sovereignty of state. A/Q to
Hobbes, as the man is individualist by nature, self centered by desire or wants and
power-seeker by activity, the state of nature is characterized by ‘war of all against
all’.
• Based on the pessimistic view of human nature, Hobbes that without any authority to
restrain and check human egoistic impulses, the condition of life would be ‘nasty,
poor, brutish and short’. Therefore, everyone would live in a condition of perpetual
and oppressive fear and anarchy in the absence of state.
• A/Q to Hobbes, social injustice is usually an expression of absence of law and
prevalence of the idea of ‘might is right’. In this context, Hobbes argue that in the
state of nature, the fact that there’s no state or civil authority to enforce any law results
into an anarchical condition that fails to serve justice.
• However, being a great political philosopher, Hobbes used his anarchical doctrine of
‘state of nature’ to provide a justification for his conception of an all-powerful state.
A/Q to Hobbes, driven by desire of self-preservation, man uses his reason to construct
a social contract that will afford them a life other than that available to them in the
state of nature. To ensure their escape from the state of nature, man agree to live
under common laws and creation of an ‘enforcement mechanism’ in the form of a
state. Thus, by providing a severe view of human nature and state of nature, Hobbes
manages to create an argument that makes civil society, along with all its advantages,
possible.
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• However, critics like Spinoza have pointed out that it is impossible for the monsters of
Hobbes’s state of nature to become law abiding and docile citizens of a civil society
in the manner prescribed by Hobbes.

(2) ‘The Greatest Liberty of subjects dependeth on the silence of the Law’- Hobbes.
• Hobbes, one of the greatest political philosophers, belongs to the ‘social contract’
tradition, which proposes contractual origin of the state. In ‘Leviathan’, Hobbes
propounded the first complete statement of theory of absolute & unlimited sovereignty
of the state.
• Hobbes, based on his pessimistic view of human nature, proposes an anarchical
picture of state of nature, which is ‘nasty, poor, brutish & short’. He argued that man
had absolute liberty in the state of nature, which resulted into absolute anarchy where
‘might was right’.
• In this way, Hobbes used the anarchical doctrine of state of nature to provide a
justification for creation of an ‘all-powerful state’, in which men have surrendered all
their power. A/Q to Hobbes, unlike state of nature, where men have absolute liberty,
Individuals living under the sovereignty of state is free only where state has preferred
to leave him free and has not made laws. Once state makes laws, man is bound to obey
the law and will be punished for disobedience of law, which is command of the
sovereign. In this context, Hobbes argued that ‘Liberty is the silence of law’. In other
words, a citizen is free to do what the sovereign/state hasn’t commanded or forbidden.
• Hobbesian views about extent of liberty under the state have been supported by
scholars like Bentham who says that ‘natural rights are non-sense & called it a
language of terror.
• However, it is important to strike a balance b/w liberty of individual & sovereignty/
authority of state in the way as is achieved by the constitution of India citizens enjoy
fundamental rights & freedoms but none of the rights is absolute and state can impose
‘reasonable restrictions’ in the interest of sovereignty.
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(3). ’It is clear cut individualism which makes Hobbes philosophy most revolutionary of
the age’- (Sabine).
• To quote Oakeshott, Hobbesian ‘Leviathan’ is the greatest sole masterpiece of
political philosophy written in the English language. He laid down a systematic theory
of sovereignty, law, human nature and political obligation. It is for this reason,
Hobbes is treated as ‘the greatest political philosopher’.
• Hobbesian view about human nature and preservation of life and order constitute the
foundation of his entire political philosophy. He subscribed to the pessimistic mode of
thinking, needs of human nature and, thus, suggests a basis for the absolute
sovereignty of state.
• Hobbesian ‘Leviathan’ contains the first full statement of theory of absolute and
unlimited sovereignty of the state. Unlike Jean Bodin, who failed to overcome the
medieval mentality and limited the concept of sovereignty only to the secular sphere
of life, Hobbes removed all those limitations by which Bodin had hedged its
sovereignty. Based on his anarchical doctrine of ‘state of nature’, which is ‘nasty,
poor, brutish and short’, Hobbes provided a justification for his conception of an ‘all-
powerful state’. He has argued that sovereign state cannot accomplish the task for
which it was created unless it is provided with absolute and unrestrained powers.
Therefore, he makes it obligatory on the part of citizens to render unconditional
obedience to the state authority. It is in this context of absolutism, Hobbes is regarded
as the first modern political philosopher.
• However, a/q to Sabine, the absolute power of the sovereign. A theory with which
Hobbes’ name is associated, was really the necessary complement of his
individualism. This is because the state is not an end in itself, rather a means to the
end of individual security and welfare. A/Q to Hobbes, man has transferred all of his
natural rights, but has retained the natural right to life or ‘self-preservation’. Hobbes
argues that the obligation to obey the sovereign remains only so long as the sovereign
has the power to protect its subjects and it appears when the state power loses the
capacity to defend them.
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• Therefore, in this way, for Sabine, individualism appears to be the most striking
feature of Hobbesian political philosophy. In the same line, Nisbet argues that despite
the rigorousness of his theory, it is the individual whom Hobbes has in his mind as the
embodiment of virtue. Hobbes didn’t seek the extermination of individual rights but
their fulfillment. Nisbet held that, for Hobbes, the greatest claim of the absolute state
lay in its power to create an environment for the individual’s pursuit of his natural
ends. It is for this reason, Hobbes is consideredto be greatest of all individualists.

(4) ‘Men being by nature all free, equal and independent, no one can be put out of the
estate & subjected to the political power of another without his own consent’-
(Locke).
• A/Q to Maxey, the greatest achievement of Locke, who is considered to be the father
of liberalism, lies in that he gave the world a systematic, rational and eminently
realizable philosophy of individualism, popular sovereignty and constitutional
government.
• Locke, in his work, ‘The Second Treatise’, tried to explain the basis of legitimate
government and the reason why free individuals agreed to be subjects to an external
authority.
• A/Q to Locke, in order to get rid of inconveniences of the state of nature, free
individuals expressed their consent willingly & voluntarily through a social contract
to establish the government. Locke states that the sovereign power thus created by the
consent is vested in the community as a whole and not in any single person.
• Locke insisted that all the states were established by consent. Without consent, there
was no political community. Locke spoke of two kinds of consent- explicit (direct) and
tacit consent. A/Q to Locke, for all practical purposes, after the formation of the
community (civil society), the common consent becomes the consent of the majority. It
is assumed that minority has given the tacit consent. In other words, he given the tacit
minority would consent in all things to rule by the majority, which carries the force of
the community, for that is the only way of political action. In this way, government
based on consent is the fundamental principle of Locke’s theory of political obligation.
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• However, the idea of consent is considered to be one of the most vulnerable features
of Locke’s theory. John Plamenatz comes to conclusion that it serves no useful
purposes. John Dunn finds fault with the notion of consent as the basis of freedom in
the state.

(5) ‘It is quite compatible with the principle of utility to recognize the fact that some kinds
of pleasure are more desirable and valuable than others’- (J S Mill).
• Mill considered himself as a discipline of Bentham and in the Benthamite principle of
utility, he found a ‘Creed, doctrine, philosophy & a religion’. However, his desire to
defend utilitarianism against the charge of being base & degrading led him to revise
it.
• In order to modify Bentham’s ‘Quantitative’ concept of utility, which considers
actions ethical if it fulfils one’s desire to promote pleasure & avoid pain, Mill
introduced the ‘qualitative’ concept of utility by distinguishing b/w higher and lower
pleasure.
• He insisted that human beings are capable of intellectual and moral pleasures, which
were superior to physical ones. In this sense, he disagrees with Bentham’s claim that
quantity of pleasure being equal, ‘pushpin is as good as poetry’.
• Criticizing Bentham’s utilitarianism as being narrow interpretation, mill argues for
its widest interpretation, which is based on the ides of a progressive man. Mill argued
that initially human being was dominated by desire to fulfill one’s appetite but
gradually appetite was replaced by dominance of reason & rational pleasure. It is in
this context, he argued that ‘a Socrates dissatisfied is better than a fool satisfied’.
• Mill’s attempt to modify classical utilitarianism of Bentham by emphasizing on the
need to assess happiness both quantitatively and qualitatively saved the ideology of
utilitarianism from being absorbed into other theories. That’s why he’s also known as
the ‘last of great utilitarian’s.
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(6) ‘The only freedom which deserves the name is that of pursuing own good in our own
way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs, or impede their efforts
to obtain it. Each is their proper guardian of his own health, whether bodily, or
mental or spiritual. Mankind are greater gainers by suffering each others to live as
seems good to themselves, than by compelling each to live seems good to the rest’ –
(J. S. Mill).
• J.S. Mill is regarded as the greatest exponent of liberty as he provided the most
systematic view of liberal concept of liberty. He re-emphasized the centrality of liberty
of thought, expression and action at a time when utilitarians like Bentham have
subordinated liberty to utility and regarded it merely as a means to the materialistic
interests of the individual or the society.
• A/Q to Mill, liberty is a transcendent utility. It is a pre-condition of progress as it is
essential to develop, enrich and expand individual personality. He defended liberty
because he realized that there could be no self-development in its absence.
• However, mill defended absolute freedom of thought and expression because he was
convinced that it is only man’s mind that changes society. But he argued that freedom
of action is limited by the condition that no one should make himself a harm to others.
• Mill categorized actions of every individual as either ‘self-regarding’ or ‘other-
regarding’ based upon the consequences of the actions done. A/Q to Mill, the first
category constitutes the region of absolute freedom and the second as the region of
limited and restricted freedom.
• A/Q to Mill, the individual is sovereign over his own mind and the body and, therefore,
must be left free in all concerns himself alone. In this sphere, society has no right to
impose any restraint on the individual because, a/q to Mill, all restraint qua restraint
is evil because it obstructs the development of human personality in the atmosphere
of external restraints.
• A/Q to Mill, in regard to the ‘other-regarding’ actions, in which the consequences of
an individual action go beyond him and harm others, the society has the right and
duty to prevent and put restrictions on freedom.
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• Thus, by defining the ‘appropriate region of human liberty’, he determined that real
and absolute freedom is only in context of self regarding actions of individual in which
an individual pursue its own good in its own way. In the broader context, Mill argued
that the worth of the state is the worth of the individual composing it, thus, there should
be restricted intervention by the state.
• However, in an attempt to define regions of liberty, Mill projects himself as, what
Barker call, prophet of empty liberty. A/Q to Barker, Mill goes for artificial separation
b/w ‘self-regarding’ actions and ‘other-regarding’ actions and, thus, leaves very
limited space for liberty.

(7) ‘India’s desire to counterbalance china compels India to ‘Act Far East’. Discuss the
challenges and opportunities for India in Russia’s Far East.
• The Russian Far East is increasingly at the fore front of geopolitics centred on the
Indo-Pacific and is key to Russia’s ‘pivot to Asia’. The region, despite occupying 40%
of Russia’s total territory and rich in natural resources such as oil & gas, coal,
diamond, gold etc, is economically underdeveloped and lacks good infrastructure
&communications. A/Q to some strategists, the region, owing to its borders with
Chinese provinces, could gravitate to china if not integrated quickly, economically &
socially, with rest of the Russia.
• In this context, of Russia’s continuing inability to develop its Far East and increasing
realization of the fact that center of the global economic gravity is shifting to Asia,
Russia has turned to the East as the main alternative to western finance, markets &
technology. However, owing to the lack of interest shown by china in Russian Far
East’s transport & energy infrastructure, Russia is attempting to diversify its
engagement with other growing powers. In this context, India has emerged as a key
player with its focus on Russian Far East.
India in Russia’s Far East
Opportunities
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(i) The region is important due to its proximity to china and India’s contribution in its
development could signal china that India can raise its geo-economic presence in the
areas close to and sensitive to china.
(ii) India’s involvement in Russia’s Far East would demonstrate its commitment to
maintaining a strategic friendship with the Kremlin, as India is aware that Russian
Far East’s development is an important priority for Russia. Thus, innovately
implemented, India’s ties with the Russian Far East could help cement Indo Russian
relations as well as bolster its ties with central Asia and East Asia.
(iii) Apart from the region’s rich hydrocarbon reserves providing opportunities for Indian
companies, infrastructure, pharmaceuticals and agriculture developments are other
areas of opportunities for Indian business & labour.
(iv) Equally important, India could help mediate& partner Japanese involvement in the
development of Russia’s Far East.
Challenges
(i) In 2018, India’s trade with Russia stood at a mere $ 11 billion, while Russia –china
trade was $ 107 billion.
(ii) Unlike Russia and China, India and Russia are geographically separated, which
complicates trade logistics.
(iii) India’s strategic credit lines to counterbalance china, similar to one India pledged to
Russian Far East, are a complex and slow process, especially given the well known
unhurriedness of Indian bureaucracy.

(8) What are the structural impediments in India-China relations ? To

what extent there is a possibility of qualitative change in India-China relations?
Give arguements in support of your answer.
• India and china have long been considered as the two emerging giants on the world
stage, and the regional & international interactions b/w the two countries are
expected to become a defining feature of what is considered to be an ‘ASIAN
CENTURY’.
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• However, in the past few years, India-China relations have gone through a tumultuous
phase, which include a series of disputes b/w the two countries, including the Doklam
standoff, Beijing’s shielding to Pakistan and India’s principled stand at CPEC and
recently China’s opposition to India’s move in Kashmir. These difficulties in India-
China relations become important, given the efforts made by both the sides with
different mechanisms, including ‘informal summits’, to address the basic differences.
• It is in this context, it is necessary to understand the persistent structural mismatch
that hobbled India China ties. The problem is the widening gap in the comprehensive
national power of the two Asian giants. China’s aggregate GDP ($ 14 Trillion) is
nearly five times larger than that of India ($2.8 Trillion). As a result, on the economic
& trade front, China views the relationship with India as a mere market for its goods.
A/Q to Samir Saran, China’s mercantilism offers no room for partnership, only
dependence.
• Moreover, China’s annual defence spending at $250 billion is four times larger than
that of India. Qualitatively, China has outpaced India in the much needed
modernization of its armed forces and higher defence organization.
• All these structural/power imbalance translates into an unpleasant diplomatic
relationship as China is under no pressure to please India, which is clearly evident in
China’s stand on question of India’s membership to NSG, its investment in CPEC
passing through Kashmir (POK) etc.
• Therefore, recognizing these power imbalance, India must apply realism to face the
challenges posed by china based on small and pragmatic steps to narrow differences
with china on bilateral issues-especially the boundary dispute, trade deficit and
development of regional infrastructure.
• However, a/q to C. Raja Mohan, the contemporary world order is characterized by
re-alignment, de-alignment and multi-alignment, especially in the context of global
uncertainties. In this context, the need for India & China to work together in global
governance has highlighted by china in recent months. There has been a release in
tensions in the relationship after the informal Wuhan Summit b/w the two nations. On
the longstanding border issues, the leadership of the two countries have decided to
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issue strategic guidance to their respective militaries to strengthen communication in

order to build trust and mutual understanding. With the overall aim of maintaining
peace & tranquility in the border region. In an important move they agreed to
undertake joint economic projects in Afghanistan. Moreover, post the Summit, China
won’t be ‘too hard’ with New Delhi on the issue of BRI.
• On the other hand, India, on its part departed from its traditional policy on that when
Modi government decided to invite head of Tibetan government-in- exile to Pan’s
swearing in and give the Dalai Lama’s visit to Tawang an official status. However,
a/q to Shyam Saran, as this policy was unsustainable India returned to its consistent
policy. Similarly, on Doklam, India is keeping low profile on Chinese building
infrastructure & stationing more troops, on the condition that areas sensitive for India
will remain immune from it. Apart from it, while India has shown interest in using
‘Quad’ as the consultative forum, it is showing official reluctance on the Quad
question, especially its military component.
• All these developments in the Sino-India relationship are not compromising in nature
rather it is aimed at transforming the negative environment surrounding the
relationship into a positive one, in order to faster cooperation and resolve deep-seated
conflicts.