India trusts political parties the least, Army the most: Study

According to the study, the President, Prime Minister, chief minister, parliament, vidhan sabha (state legislature) and panchayat/municipal corporation (MC) came under an “effective trust” of 40 per cent.

Representational Picture. (AFP)

New Delhi: In what could further boost its morale, the army has been found to be enjoying the highest level of “effective trust”, followed by the Supreme Court (SC) and the high courts (HC). Political parties were seen to be languishing at the bottom of the list. The research was conducted by Azim Premji University (APU) and Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), which was conducted in 22 Assembly constituencies with 16,680 respondents. The study says government officials were trusted upon by just 4.8 per cent people. What could concern most political parties is the average “effective trust” figure of -1.75 per cent which is under the sub-zero category. J&K: Two CRPF troopers killed in Anantnag, 1 jawan & a civilian injured Mighty 77 per cent respondents gave their thumbs up for the Indian Army. The Supreme Court and the High Court were trusted upon by 54.8 per cent and 48 per cent of respondents, as per the study. Indian Army enjoys the highest level of “effective trust” with more than 77 per cent respondents putting their faith in them; the Supreme Court and the High Court rank claim the next two spots with 54.8 per cent and 48 per cent of average “effective trust” respectively. According to the study, the President, Prime Minister, chief minister, parliament, vidhan sabha (state legislature) and panchayat/municipal corporation (MC) came under an “effective trust” of 40 per cent. As per the report, Maharashtra showed high levels of trust, over 60%, in elected institutions–parliament, vidhan sabha, panchayat/MC–while southern state Andhra Pradesh (AP) showed least level of trust.