The Economist - USA (2020-11-28)

20 BriefingDemocracy in India The EconomistNovember 28th 2020

2 operations. Helpfully, India’s soldiers have

remained silent at useful moments, too. As

independent satellite evidence emerged

this summer showing that Chinese forces

had occupied strategic posts in territory

claimed by India along remote sections of

the countries’ border, the army steadfastly

refused to comment on Indian govern-

ment assertions that no land had been lost.

Even the impartiality of the Election

Commission of India (eci), with a sterling

seven-decade record of managing the

mammoth logistics of Indian votes, has

come under scrutiny. During the 2019 gen-

eral election, which Mr Modi won by a

landslide, his opponents sharply protested

when the prime minister and other top bjp

leaders repeatedly escaped serious censure

for issuing what amounted to communal

dog whistles, whereas the ecipromptly

sanctioned rival candidates for lesser in-

fractions of its strict codes of conduct. One

of the body’s three top commissioners did

object, but was overruled. His family sub-

sequently found itself being investigated

for alleged tax evasion. The official quit the

ecibefore the end of his term.

Given that India continues to run elec-

tions that by most standards are admirably

free and fair, it may seem churlish to voice

fears for its democracy. After all, even as

America’s presidential count was mired in

controversy in early November, election

officials in Bihar—India’s poorest state,

with a population of 125m—managed to

count the votes without a hitch in less than

a day. Like so many others in recent years,

that election was won fair and square by Mr

Modi’s team, in Bihar’s case in alliance with

a local party.

The bjp’s supporters scoff at the notion

that its rise under Mr Modi has entailed any

subversion of institutions or dilution of

democracy. Such protests are merely sour

grapes, insists Raghavan Jagannathan, edi-

tor of Swarajya, a right-wing magazine.

“Our democracy is flawed, but it is a work in

progress, not just about the people who are

currently in power.” Modi apologists point

to disturbing trends in states that are not

ruled by the bjp. Kerala recently introduced

a law to punish “offensive” speech by up to

three years in prison (but withdrew it after

heavy criticism). In Odisha, a family with

connections to the bjpthat owns a televi-

sion channel critical of the local ruling

party has found itself buried in lawsuits.

Indian politics is a game of hardball.

The bjp is the world’s largest political

machine, with many multiples the energy,

organisational strength and financial

backing of its rivals. It has a strong leader in

Mr Modi, and a strong narrative, however

unpalatable it is to many. This contrasts

sharply with the vacillation of Congress,

India’s previous dominant party. Led by a

fading Gandhi dynasty, it has slowly disin-

tegrated. Ghulam Nabi Azad, one of 23 Con-

gress leaders who recently petitioned So-

nia Gandhi, the party president, for

sweeping changes, says its leadership has

lost connection with people on the ground.

Its organisational structure has “col-

lapsed”. Indians who loathe Mr Modi are of-

ten just as disparaging of Rahul Gandhi, the

party’s mediocre current figurehead.

Grand designs in Delhi

In the absence of a strong opposition at the

centre, the most effective resistance to the

bjp’s dominance lies in state capitals, as

well in the press and more broadly in civil

society. These bastions are all under heavy

assault. Mr Modi’s fearsome chief lieuten-

ant, Amit Shah, the home minister, has

made no secret of his determination to top-

ple Mamata Banerjee, a staunch and often

vitriolic critic who has run the pivotal state

of West Bengal since 2011, in state elections

next year. Opposition parties holding slim

majorities in other big states, including Ra-

jasthan and Maharashtra, are acutely aware

of the bjp’s capacity to “persuade” defec-

tors to its side. This recently happened in

Madhya Pradesh, where Mr Modi’s party

unceremoniously unseated Congress after

luring away a chunk of its deputies.

By leaning on the big conglomerates

that dominate the mainstream media, by

favouring outlets that share its ideology,

such as Mr Goswami’s, and by flooding so-

cial media with agitprop, the bjphas large-

ly marginalised critical voices in the press.

In the past two months, new rules have cur-

tailed the permitted level of foreign invest-

ment in online media and placed the entire

sector under the authority of the broad-

casting ministry. The moves appear to be

aimed at getting a grip on one of the main

remaining outlets for dissent, say editors

at three of India’s increasingly popular

news sites. One that specialised in hard-

hitting investigative stories, HuffPost In-

dia, closed on November 24th.

Compliance regulations regarding for-

eign donations have already been used to

shut down tens of thousands of ngos. The

most recent example is the local chapter of

Amnesty International, an advocacy group

for human rights. In September the gov-

ernment added onerous filing require-

ments and rules that forbid larger charities

from funding smaller ones.

Mr Khaitan, the Oxford law professor, is

not alone in warning that the bjp’s one-sid-

ed advantage is subtly changing the nature

of India’s game. “We do not have a level

playing field any more,” he says. “What we

are getting is not quite a one-party state,

but certainly a hegemonic state.” The tra-

jectory resembles that in other democra-

cies, such as Hungary, Poland and Turkey,

where autocracy is on the rise (see chart).

Mr Modi is now taking a keen interest in

reshaping Delhi, India’s capital, in more

imperial fashion. Following an opaque and

hasty process that to no surprise ended

with the choice of Mr Modi’s own favourite

architect, a fellow Gujarati, as chief design-

er, the city’s Central Vista, a 3km-long ave-

nue of lawns not unlike the National Mall

in Washington, is going under the knife. It

will be flanked by ten giant, identical gov-

ernment office buildings. The project fore-

sees the building of a new, expanded par-

liament, big enough to seat double the 545

mps that currently sit in the lower house.

The old building will become a “Museum of

Democracy”. And, naturally, there will be a

bigger, fancier residence and office for the

prime minister himself.

Another sign of Mr Modi’s direction of

travel can be detected in the differing

“read-outs” after his congratulatory phone

call to President-elect Joe Biden. Among

the things that Mr Biden’s team said the

two had discussed was a shared commit-

ment to “strengthening democracy, at

home and abroad”. In the version from Mr

Modi’s office, that bit was left out. 7

Party lines

Development of ruling parties in increasingly

autocratic countries

Sources: Juraj Medzihorsky;

V-Dem Institute

*On scale from 0-6 where

0=far left and 6=far right

3.53.02.52.0 5.04.54.

Economic left-right*

Illiberalism

1.

0.

0.

0.

0.

(^19900)
2018
1984
2019
20072007
2019
2015
20022002
2015
BJP
India
Fidesz
Hungary
AKP
Tu r ke y
Fidesz
Hungary
PiS
Poland
PiS
Poland