How does the Opposition's role change in an ‘electoral autocracy’? with Yogendra Yadav

In Focus by The Hindu · Jul 10, 2026 · 1h

In recent years, democracy research institutes have been categorising India as a ‘partly free’ democracy, with the V-Dem Institute of the University of Gothenburg classifying India as an “electoral autocracy” from as far back as 2019.

For India’s Opposition parties, will the business-as-usual electoral politics suffice in an ‘electoral autocracy’, especially when they can go longer count on a level playing field?

Political scientist, psephologist, activist, politician and columnist Yogendra Yadav has been arguing that the transition of Indian democracy from “competitive authoritarianism” to…