India’s rank in Global Democracy Index slips to 53^rd position while still being categorised as a “flawed democracy”. This global index which was launched in 2006 has been drawn out by the Economist Intelligence Unit of The Economist Group, which is a sister company of The Economist newspaper.
India has seen a fall in its overall score, as in 2014 it had its peak scoring 7.92 and ranking 27^th to 6.61 in the current index at 53^rd position. India was ranked at 51^st position in the 2019 Index.

Norway has ranked highest in the Index with a score of 9.81, followed by Iceland, Sweden, New Zealand and Canada. USA has also found itself under the “flawed democracy” category, ranking at 25^th position.

The report attributes India’s fall due to “democratic backsliding” under Narendra Modi “whose policies have fomented anti- Muslim feeling and religious strife, has damaged the political fabric of the country”. The fall in position has also been attributed to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) passed in 2019. “The Act introduces a religious element to the conceptualisation of Indian citizenship, a step that many critics see as undermining the secular basis of the Indian state,” says the report.

The report also cites PM Modi being part of the ground-breaking ceremony of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya which is being built on the site of a 16th century mosque which was demolished by a Hindutva nationalist mob in 1992. The report asserts that the temple’s construction will further endear Mr Modi to his Hindutva nationalist base. The report briefly mentions that the authorities’ handling of the coronavirus pandemic also led to a further erosion of civil liberties, presumably referring to the Tablighi Jamaat incident which further led to communalisation of the pandemic  causing the Muslim community in the country to face discrimination.

India’s neighbours Bangladesh, Bhutan and Pakistan’s positions improved marginally in 2020, even if they do not rank higher than India.

India, like the rest of the countries, was graded under 5 parameters electoral process and pluralism (8.67), functioning of government (7.14), political participation (6.67), political culture (5.00) and civil liberties (5.59).

The complete report may be read here

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India has plummeted 10 places down in global democracy index, released by The Economist Group. This global index which was launched in 2006 has been drawn out by the Economist Intelligence Unit of The Economist Group, which is a sister company of The Economist newspaper.

India ranks lower than South Africa, Malaysia and Columbia as well. The survey rates the state of democracy across 167 countries based on five measures—electoral process and pluralism, the functioning of government, political participation, democratic political culture and civil liberties—finds that democracy has been eroded around the world in the past year. 

As per the Index India comes under the category of “flawed democracy”. India has always been regarded as a flawed democracy in this index. Flawed democracies are countries which have free and fair elections and basic civil liberties but where there are significant weaknesses in other aspects of democracy, including governance, political culture and participation. This is although the first time India’s score has fallen below 7 out of 10.

India is among the 11 countries which saw regressions in 2019, the other 10 countries being Belarus, Benin, Bolivia, Cameroon, Comoros, Egypt, Guyana, Singapore, Mali and Zambia.

The report stated, ““The biggest democracy in the world, India, dropped ten places in the Democracy Index’s global ranking to 51st place. India’s overall score fell from 7.23 in 2018 to 6.90 in 2019. The primary cause of the democratic regression was an erosion of civil liberties in the country.” India’s highest score has been 7.92, in 2014.

The report attributed the fall in ranking of India on the index to the repeal of provisions giving autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir, Assam NRC, CAA and protests. It also makes note of the criticism that the BJP is trying to target Muslims to change the demographics of India. India was graded in electoral process and pluralism (8.67), government functioning (6.79), political participation (6.67), political culture (5.63) and civil liberties (6.76).

The total score of some 68 countries declined from 2018, but almost as many (65) recorded an improvement. 

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