Was there democracy in the time of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw)?

In a special sense, yes. It was a true religious democracy in which people were consulted, but it stood under divine guidance. Later, however, monarchy took hold in many Muslim lands, and this order was never able to develop further.

Some ask whether the early Muslims needed courage to show their opinion openly. No such situation arose at that time. That era was a true religious democracy. People were asked and consulted, yet the order rested on an authority that came from God.

The verses above show what this meant. Even the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) was to consult people on important matters. Believers settle their affairs by consultation. Offices are to be entrusted to those who are worthy of them, and whoever governs is to judge with justice.

Sadly, this order did not last. After the early period, monarchy took hold in the Muslim lands. Kings did not wish to ask the people. So the consultation that the Holy Qur’an teaches never had the chance to grow into a settled political practice.

That is why modern democracy does not have its roots in Islam. It arose elsewhere, with its own weaknesses. And to this day Muslim countries do not agree on what form of government Islam actually requires. Each country has its own view.

What the Holy Qur’an clearly sets out are principles. Among them are consultation, trust placed in the worthy, and justice for all. Wherever these principles are lived, the spirit of that early time is alive, whatever name one gives to the form of government.