India’s National Election: The Future of the World’s Largest Democracy

As India prepares for general elections beginning next month, the world’s largest democracy finds itself at an inflection point. With incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) expected to maintain control of the country’s parliament, what can we expect from a third five-year term? What are the opportunities and challenges that a dominant BJP poses to India’s democracy? Is India’s democracy in decline, as some assert, or does it remain broadly competitive and inclusive and perhaps even a relative bastion of democracy’s promise?