As red flags grow fewer and May Day rallies lose their once-vibrant fervour across India and the world, the appeal of International Workers’ Day appears to be waning. What was once a powerful symbol of solidarity now struggles amid economic pragmatism and rising nationalist currents. This decline coincides with a stark reality: despite three decades of Liberalisation, Privatisation, and Globalisation (LPG) reforms and claims of economic upsurge, income disparities and inequalities in India have sharpened. The top percentiles have captured disproportionate wealth while multidimensional poverty, regional divides, and informal sector precarity persist for millions.

Globally, this trend finds its starkest expression in the resurgence of unbridled capitalist instincts. Donald Trump represents the ugly face of capitalism, marked by a series of aggressive trade wars, increasing intolerance towards immigrants, the rise of sectarian nationalism, and a reduced role for the UN and other world bodies in conflict resolution. His disdainful approach, bullying tactics, name-calling, labelling poorer countries as “hell holes,” and shaming developing nations, has dented the fig leaf of diplomatic culture. Arrogance and economic bullying through sweeping tariffs have undermined multilateral institutions like the GATT and WTO framework, replacing rules-based cooperation with unilateral power plays that exacerbate global tensions and human suffering.

Democratic socialism combines political democracy with economic arrangements that prioritise human needs, dignity, and equity over pure profit. Its historical goals remain vital: strengthening trade union activism for fair wages and conditions, poverty alleviation via redistributive welfare, and human rights protection by rejecting the commodification of people. In India, it must also confront intersecting divides of caste, gender, and region to foster genuine fraternity.

Karl Marx exposed capitalism’s dehumanising essence: “The bourgeoisie... has left remaining no other nexus between man and man than naked self-interest, than callous ‘cash payment.’” This logic persists in gig economies, precarious contracts, and migrant labour treated as disposable.

Rosa Luxemburg insisted, “There is no democracy without socialism, and no socialism without democracy,” warning of the choice between socialist transition or regression into barbarism.

Indian socialist giants provide grounded wisdom. Dr Ram Manohar Lohia championed equality as socialism’s core: “Socialism is a doctrine of equality... emotional kinship with one’s fellow men is impossible unless it is rooted in material equality.” He advocated “maximum attainable equality,” the Seven Revolutions (including against caste, for women’s emancipation, and economic equality), and rejected both capitalism and Soviet-style communism as irrelevant for the Third World, criticising their obsession with concentrated power and big machines that deepen poverty and conflict.

Acharya Narendra Dev, a key Congress Socialist Party thinker, emphasised ethical, democratic socialism. He argued that “socialism alone could guarantee fullest democracy” and that democracy under capitalism was “sham democracy.” Narendra Dev blended Marxist analysis with Gandhian values, insisting on mass participation and viewing socialism as essential for true economic emancipation alongside political freedom. Bernie Sanders adds a contemporary note: democratic socialism creates “an economy that works for all, not just the very wealthy.”

These voices highlight socialism’s resistance to dehumanisation, whether through profit-driven exploitation, sectarian exclusion of immigrants, or the bullying of poorer nations.

India’s LPG reforms delivered growth, FDI, and poverty reduction in absolute terms, yet inequalities sharpened. The Gini coefficient rose in urban areas; wealth concentrated at the top while agricultural distress, farmer suicides, jobless growth, and massive informal employment persisted. Regional disparities widened between booming western/southern states and lagging eastern/rural belts. Dehumanisation manifests in sweatshop conditions, urban slums contrasting corporate opulence, and migrant workers denied dignity.

Globally, Trump-era policies exemplify capitalism’s aggressive turn: sweeping tariffs disrupting trade and raising costs for consumers worldwide, weaponised sanctions causing humanitarian collateral, reduced multilateralism weakening the UN’s conflict-resolution role, and nativist rhetoric fueling intolerance toward immigrants. Sectarian nationalism and disdainful diplomacy: name-calling, shaming “hell hole” countries, and eroding WTO norms through unilateral bullying, replace cooperative frameworks with power politics. These diverge sharply from socialist ideals of solidarity, equality among nations, and human-centred development, instead amplifying exploitation and instability that socialist analysis has long predicted from unchecked capital and elite interests. Democratic socialism offers pragmatic pathways without romanticising the past or ignoring trade-offs:

Implement progressive taxation, universal public services (healthcare, education, housing), and stronger labour laws. India can adapt Nordic hybrids combining markets with high union density and welfare, for inclusive growth.

Revitalise trade unions, cooperatives, and decentralised planning aligned with Lohia’s vision of people’s power and anti-caste struggles. Community movements for living wages and participatory budgeting can rebuild solidarity.

Push for reformed global institutions emphasising fair trade, debt relief, and equitable technology sharing, countering bullying and restoring multilateralism in the spirit of Narendra Dev’s democratic internationalism.

Real-world examples demonstrate potential. Early post-independence India’s socialist-inspired public sector and welfare institutions laid industrial foundations. Scandinavian social democracies achieve high living standards and low poverty through strong unions and democratic oversight. In India, schemes like expanded MGNREGA and midday meals have mitigated distress when implemented accountably. Challenges such as fiscal sustainability and innovation require hybrid solutions: democratic oversight of markets, anti-corruption measures, and evidence-based adjustments to avoid past pitfalls of over-centralisation.

In today’s landscape, marked by India’s persistent inequalities despite LPG gains, and globally by Trump’s embodiment of capitalism’s ugly face through wars of tariffs, immigrant intolerance, sectarian nationalism, diminished UN relevance, and arrogant disdain toward poorer nations, idealistic democratic socialism gains fresh urgency. Indian thinkers like Lohia and Narendra Dev remind us that true progress demands material equality as the foundation for emotional kinship and genuine democracy.

Revising socio-economic systems through policy innovation, grassroots mobilisation, and renewed international cooperation can yield more equitable, sustainable outcomes. As May Day’s fervour dims, the underlying need for human solidarity and justice intensifies. Democratic socialism, firmly democratic and evidence-guided, remains essential for restoring dignity, bridging divides, and building a civilisation where people, not profit or power, stand at the centre.