Authoritarian Currents in Democratic Waters: Unpacking the Drivers of Democratic Backsliding in Contemporary India

Abstract

Through an explaining-outcome process-tracing design grounded in a critical realist philosophy of science, this thesis investigates democratic backsliding in the case of India, where recent years have seen a visible decline in democratic norms despite the continued operation of formal institutions. Drawing on institutional and agency-based theories, the thesis examines five underlying mechanisms of backsliding, specifically 1) India’s non-consociational institutional design, 2) party mobilization asymmetry, 3) the weakening of subnational autonomy, 4) radical policy preferences, and 5) politization of societal cleavages, to understand whether these are reflected in the case of India. This is done to answer the central research question: What are the key drivers of democratic backsliding in India? Drawing on 15 expert interviews as well as extensive document analysis, the findings reveal that backsliding in India is not purely structural nor solely actor-driven but emerges through a cumulative and adaptive process shaped by feedback loops. However, while mechanisms such as non-consociational design, party mobilization asymmetry, and polarization have accelerated backsliding, episodes of societal resistance highlight the continued potential for democratic resilience. The thesis ultimately integrates these mechanisms in a theoretical framework to explain the drivers of democratic decline in India. This framework is discussed within a broader comparative perspective through shadow case reflections on Brazil and the United States, finding several overlapping trends particularly for agency-based mechanisms. The thesis thus offers an analytical framework that captures how structural vulnerabilities are strategically exploited by political agents. In doing so, it advances a more nuanced understanding of how backsliding unfolds in contemporary democracies.