After coming into power following the 2014 election, India’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has initiated an alarming backsliding of democratic institutions and practices. Having recently become the world’s most populous country, India’s dip in authoritarianism should be observed on a global scale. The contemporary democratic decline within India can be described as a “hybrid regime,” with India’s formal institutions remaining relatively stable while their civil liberties have been steadily decreasing (Tudor 2023). The BJP is the largest political party within India and has been accused of abusing its power in recent years, most notably through their capture of independent institutions such as the Elections Commission, the judiciary, and the media leading to allegations of voter theft by the BJP (Johri 2025). Censorship, intimidation, and centralization of power have caused gradual democratic erosion within India. As the largest global democracy, India’s stability and power is crucial when discussing global governance. Legislative capture in India has accelerated democratic backsliding through weakening democratic institutions, checks and balances, and reducing the legislature to a rubber stamp for the ruling party.
Legislative capture is a form of corruption involving special interests groups exerting influence over lawmakers to enact policies that favor private interests over the public good (Riedl et al. 2024). This causes democratic backsliding because legislative capture creates a majority dominance, strict party line voting, procedural shortcuts, and a marginalization of committees–all of which are seen in India. When one party becomes extremely dominant, it suppresses competition and weakens democracy (Waldner and Lust 2018). The BJP has become increasingly dominant while suppressing the power of the opposition, leaving them weaker and more fragmented. Dominant parties decrease political diversity, making it easier for the opposition to be suppressed and for the leading party to gain more political power.
When executives accumulate power and face weak institutional constraints, they drive democratic backsliding. Modi has centralized decision making in the executive office, causing institutions, such as parliament and bureaucracy, to increasingly refer to the executive. Independent institutions, such as the media, elections commission, and civil society all face higher pressure (Prabhu 2025). A highly dominated leader ruling with weak democratic institutions will erode democracy further. During the 2014 and 2019 elections, Modi’s BJP won two consecutive majorities in the Lok Sabha, India’s lower house of parliament. This was a feat that had not been completed since the Indian National Congress’ former executive dominance Following the 2024 election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing BJP won 240, which fell short of the 272 seats needed in order to hold a parliamentary majority. Together with their coalition with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), they are able to hold a majority within parliament (AJLabs 2024). This large parliamentary majority reduces the ability to hold meaningful and productive debates, often excluding opposition parties from the conversation.
Partisanship is a rising phenomenon within Indian politics. There is high party loyalty towards the main political parties such as the BJP, Indian National Congress (INC)and the Communist Party of India (Marxist). High levels of electoral volatility and party switching hide the presence of partisan loyalties within Indian voters (Barthwal and Jensenius 2024). While it may not be visible on the surface level, strict party-line voting discourages dissent within the legislature, removing that line of democratic checks. Without it, legislators are unable to hold debate, express opposing opinions, or offer up alternative policy solutions. A lack of debate or discourse would also allow for procedural shortcuts–leading to key laws becoming passed rapidly without proper debate or scrutiny.
In March of 2024, India implemented the Citizenship Amendment Act– a strict immigration act that would provide a pathway for citizenship for non-muslim citizens. It was argued by Amnesty International and the Human Rights Commission that this act was exclusionary towards Muslims. There was also concern that the CAA could be used as a way to prosecute Muslims living in India. This law, which was passed rapidly, is a result of legislative capture. Prime Minister Modi had made this law one of his “key poll promises”. With a strong national support for the BJP, partisanship and legislative capture by one of the majority parties guaranteed that this act would go into effect–affecting all Muslims currently seeking citizenship within India.
Legislative capture by a single dominant party is detrimental to the health of a nation’s democracy. The case in India is no different. The BJP’s large hold of power is eroding checks and balances, decreasing executive accountability, weakening the opposition, and normalizing executive dominance. While strong majorities can enable efficient governance, efficiency without accountability risks undermining democratic norms–opening the door for abuses of power. India is just one of many global cases emphasizing the impacts of elected leaders who use institutional control to erode democracy from the inside out. Masked under the idea of democracy, a large party or coalition majority will allow autocratic actions to slip through the cracks in the legislature and inevitably oppress innocent civilians.
Barthwal, Ankita, and Francesca Refsum Jensenius. 2024. “Partisanship’s Striking Resilience in India.” Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, March 22. https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2024/03/partisanships-striking-resilience-in-india.
Tudor, Maya. 2023. “Why India’s Democracy Is Dying.” Journal of Democracy 34 (3): 121–32.
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