Directions for questions 11 to 15: Read the following passages carefully and answer the questions that follow them.The maturing of Indian democracy with the slow but sure strengthening of representative institutions, the separation of powers, and increased participation in elections is a triumph for the people. But there are questions about the depth of our democratic consciousness. How much say do Indian citizens have in influencing important legislations that have a strong bearing on their lives? Is it merely enough for citizens to elect and thrust responsibility upon parliamentary representatives to make choices for them? Can there be other devices to supplement the functioning of Indian democracy to make it more accountable, participatory and deliberative?As we ponder these questions, referendums – instruments of direct democracy where citizens get to directly vote on specific and important issues rather than for representatives who will make a choice on their behalf on those issues – have been in the news recently. The Brexit referendum, on whether Britain should stay in the European Union, concluded on June 23 with 52 per cent (of 72.2 per cent of the electorate that turned out) voting to “Leave”. The October 2 referendum called by the Colombian government to ratify the accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) resulted in a “No” vote favoured by 50.3 per cent of the less than 38 per cent of the electorate that turned out.In both these referendums, held in diverse regions, the outcome came as a surprise. Anger at perceived loss of jobs due to immigration saw many Britons (especially in England and Wales) voting for a Brexit. Post-vote analyses showed how this referendum was more of a protest vote aimed at the economic state of affairs in post-financial crisis Britain than a well-considered mandate for a new Britain that is out of the EU. Even the most ardent proponents of Brexit distanced themselves from their own autarkic positions in the run-up to the referendum after the vote. The complications of a Brexit seemed to have never been thought through by the proponents and Britain’s political class is still roiled about the manner and method of the impending Brexit.In the case of Colombia, a painstaking series of negotiations between President Juan Manuel Santos’s government and the FARC, with external brokerage from Cuba, came to naught after the referendum failed to ratify the deal. Participation was low, and the defeat margin for those in favour of the deal was narrow. But the outcome put a major spanner in the implementation of a peace deal which was to bring closure to a half a century-old civil war that resulted in lakhs of deaths.The opposition to the deal was driven by detractors who derided it for political rather than functional reasons. Former President Alvaro Uribe now suggests that the referendum was for a renewed peace deal that emphasizes greater accountability on FARC leaders for war crimes but this seems to be more of a feint to seek power during future negotiations.Question No. 14According to the passage the Colombian referendum had many shortcomings and its aftermath was a set back because the long-suffering series of negotiations between the government and the FARC came to an end without any result.  participation was low.  the result put a stumbling block in the implementation of a peace deal that would have ended years of gory fighting.  of the abrupt end of negotiations with FARC, low involvement of people and a stumbling block in the peace deal with FARC.