The ultimate source of legitimacy of the nation is:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → People
Option (1) State — Incorrect. The relation runs the other way: ‘the nation’ is the most accepted justification for a state, so states need the nation as much as, or even more than, nations need states. The state does not give the nation its legitimacy.
Option (2) People — Correct. In the modern era democracy and nationalism are the dominant sources of political legitimacy. The nation justifies the state, while ‘the people’ are the ultimate source of legitimacy of the nation.
NCERT (2025-26): “Communities, Nations and Nation-States … One of the characteristic features of the modern era (recall the discussion of modernity from Chapter 4 of your Class XI textbook, Understanding Society) is the establishment of democracy and nationalism as dominant sources of political legitimacy. This means that, today, ‘the nation’ is the most accepted or proper justification for a state, while ‘the people’ are the ultimate source of legitimacy of the nation. In other words, states ‘need’ the nation as much or even more than nations need states.…” |