India’s Constitution has long seemed stable, but the rise of an ethnic, absolute, and opaque state is changing the constitutional order in momentous and disturbing ways.
To say that Indian democracy is backsliding misunderstands the country’s history and the challenges its faces: A certain authoritarianism is embedded in India’s constitution and political structures.
India’s covid-19 response has accelerated the country’s slide toward competitive authoritarian rule by centralizing decision making, undermining federalism, and providing new pretexts for stifling dissent.
