How each model solves the same problems
Instead of “democracy versus anarchism”, compare the concrete ways collective problems get solved.
| Question | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| How are decisions made? | An elected president, an elected House of Representatives and an unelected House of Elders rooted in clans; national parties limited to three. | A statutory authority (UIDAI) under the central government sets rules; ministries decide where Aadhaar is required; Parliament legislated in 2016 and 2019.Digital identity | A stratified random sample of 523 voters deliberated in moderated groups and plenaries and answered questionnaires before and after; no decisions were taken.Sortition / citizens' assembly | |
| How are conflicts resolved? | Clan elders and customary law alongside state courts; national clan conferences settled the 1990s conflicts. | Grievance channels at UIDAI and service agencies; constitutional challenges in the Supreme Court, which ruled in 2017 and 2018. | Balanced briefing materials, trained neutral moderators and competing experts structured disagreement. | |
| How are public goods funded? | Security, customs and limited public services financed mainly by customs revenue; health and education rely on private, diaspora and NGO providers. | A universal, low-cost proof of identity used for welfare transfers, financial inclusion and public services. | Privately funded; produced published results, media coverage and a peer-reviewed study. | |
| How is AI used? | No AI role; iris biometrics were used for voter registration. | No AI in decision-making as such; automated biometric matching and deduplication decide authentication, and face authentication was added in 2018. | No AI role. | |
| What are the main risks? | Disputed recognition; conflict in the eastern regions; delayed elections and an unelected upper house; press restrictions. | Exclusion through authentication failures, data leaks, surveillance and profiling, weak independent oversight and function creep.CLM-0544 | Self-selection into attendance; artificial setting; analysis by the method's designers; no institutional uptake. |
This illustrates differences in design; it is not a universal claim about outcomes. Each cell links to mechanisms and the claims behind them.