India, May 22 -- The Government of India Act of 1935, a landmark piece of legislation, brought about significant democratic reforms in India. It granted a large measure of autonomy to provinces, ended the "dyarchy" system at the provincial level, and introduced direct elections.

Mahatma Gandhi had been talking and writing about the implementation of democracy since the 1920s. His model of democracy and development was based on an upward movement of authority from the base to the apex, unlike the British model. He imagined a democracy where the village was the core unit. For this to happen, the people had to be educated and the village self-reliant. The concept of "gramoddhar", or village upliftment and development, was thus central to Ga...