Executive elections and selection procedures are generally regarded as free and fair. Executive power is vested in a prime minister, typically the leader of the majority party in the Lok Sabha (House of the People), and a cabinet of ministers nominated by the prime minister. They are appointed by the president and responsible to the Lok Sabha. Narendra Modi secured a third term as prime minister after the NDA coalition he heads won a majority of seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The president, who plays a largely symbolic role, is chosen for a five-year term by state and national lawmakers. In July 2022, lawmakers elected Droupadi Murmu, the BJP-backed candidate and former governor of Jharkhand, president. Murmu, who took office later that month, is the first member of one of India’s marginalized tribal communities to hold the position.

Members of the 543-seat Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, are directly elected in single-member constituencies for five-year terms. Most members of the less powerful 245-seat upper house, the Rajya Sabha (Council of States), are elected by state legislatures using a proportional-representation system to serve staggered six-year terms; up to 12 members are appointed by the president.

In the April-June 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the ruling BJP secured 240 seats, leading its NDA coalition to a total of 293 seats. The Indian National Congress (INC, or Congress) placed second with 99 seats, contributing to a total of 234 seats for the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA). Smaller parties and independents took the remainder. Voter turnout was 66 percent, according to the Election Commission of India (ECI). The elections were considered generally free and fair, though some violations of campaign rules were reported. Voters also took part in several contests to decide state assemblies in 2024.

Elections for the central and state governments are overseen by the ECI. The commission is generally respected and had been thought to function without undue political interference. In recent years, however, its impartiality has been called into question. In 2021, the commission’s decisions concerning the timing and management of state elections in West Bengal, and its response to political violence ahead of those elections, were seen as biased toward the BJP. In 2023, Parliament passed legislation that granted the prime minister greater power in selecting the ECI’s leadership. The ECI’s three commissioners are now chosen by a committee including the prime minister, another minister selected by the premier, and the opposition leader in the Lok Sabha. Commissioners serve one six-year term.

Current commissioners were chosen a month before 2024 elections began. During the 2024 general elections, the ECI faced allegations of bias in favor of the BJP from civil society groups and opposition parties. Echoing previous years’ allegations, complaints centered on the ECI’s perceived leniency in addressing violations of the Model Code of Conduct, such as inflammatory speeches and misuse of religion in campaigning, including by Prime Minister Modi.

Score Change: The score declined from 4 to 3 due to deficiencies in the independence of the national election commission.

Political parties are generally able to form without interference, and a wide variety of parties representing a range of views and interests compete in practice. However, the ruling BJP has used various tools to limit campaigning by opposition parties.

The opaque financing of political parties has been a source of serious concern. A system of electoral bonds, introduced in 2017, allowed donor identities to be known to the State Bank of India but obscured from the public. It contributed to major fundraising advantages for the BJP. In February 2024, the Supreme Court of India ruled the scheme unconstitutional, citing its violation of citizens’ right to information and its impact on transparency in political funding.

The government, through the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED), has selectively pursued anticorruption investigations against opposition politicians while overlooking allegations against political allies. (The ED is tasked with investigating financial crimes.) In March 2024, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal—leader of the Aam Aadmi Party, or Common People’s Party, which is part of the INDIA alliance—was arrested by the ED in connection with a Delhi liquor policy corruption investigation. Opposition figures called the arrest politically motivated. Additionally, the freezing of Congress party funds by the ED in February further fueled accusations of political bias. The Congress party claimed this action hindered its political activities just as general elections were approaching.

Different parties regularly succeed one another in government at the state and national levels. The BJP took power after the 2014 elections, ending 10 years of INC-led government. The BJP was reelected by a wide margin in 2019 but lost its parliamentary majority in 2024. A coalition of opposition parties—the INDIA alliance, formed in July 2023 to challenge the ruling NDA in the 2024 elections. It achieved notable successes.

The persistent practice of “resort politics” in India, where political leaders coerce or isolate lawmakers in order to sway legislative or other political outcomes, has raised serious concerns about democratic integrity. For example, in 2024, one Maharashtra lawmaker claimed he was taken to a hotel under the guise of a meeting and detained to prevent his participation in an important assembly session. Previous reports have described instances where dozens of lawmakers were transported to luxury hotels, where they remained as relevant legislative or other meetings took place elsewhere.

Score Change: The score declined from 4 to 3 due to the persistence of “resort politics,” by which lawmakers are sequestered in order to prevent them from taking key votes, or to achieve other political outcomes.

Political participation, while generally free, is hampered by insurgent violence in certain areas. Separately, some political actors have sought to inflame communal tensions with the goal of energizing their own supporters while potentially intimidating opponents.

Women and members of religious and ethnic minorities vote in large numbers and have opportunities to gain political representation. Droupadi Murmu became India’s second-ever female president in 2022. The 2024 general election saw robust turnout by women voters, with female participation surpassing that of men in 19 out of 36 states and Union Territories. Female representation in the Lok Sabha, however, remains low; women secured 74 seats (14 percent of the total), four seats lower than the number won by women in 2019. Existing quotas ensure that 84 and 47 Lok Sabha seats are reserved for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, respectively. State assemblies and local bodies feature similar quotas for these historically disadvantaged groups, as well as for women representatives.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Muslim candidates secured 24 seats (down from 27 in 2019), constituting approximately 4 percent of the lower house’s seats. Muslims made up some 14.2 percent of the population according to the 2011 census.

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) of 2019 grants special access to Indian citizenship to non-Muslim immigrants and refugees from neighboring Muslim-majority states. In March 2024, the Indian government notified the rules for the CAA, initiating its formal implementation. The government has expressed its intention to move forward with plans for the creation of a national register of citizens, which some observers believe is meant to disenfranchise Muslim voters by effectively classifying them as illegal immigrants; Muslims disproportionately lack documentation attesting to their place of birth. Undocumented non-Muslims, meanwhile, are eligible for citizenship through a fast-track process under the CAA.

The citizenship status of 1.9 million residents of Assam, which is home to a significant Muslim population, remains in doubt after a citizens’ register was finalized in 2019.

India’s elected leaders have the authority to set government policies, draft and enact legislation, and govern the country’s territory in practice.

Large-scale political corruption scandals have repeatedly exposed bribery and other malfeasance, but a great deal of corruption is thought to go unreported and unpunished, and the authorities have been accused of selective, partisan enforcement. In April 2024, investigative reporting revealed that corporations had used India’s electoral bonds scheme to channel large quantities of funds to political parties, in some cases followed by policy or other changes in the companies’ favor.

Among the 121 political leaders investigated by the Enforcement Directorate since 2014, 115 belonged to opposition parties. Twenty-three out of the 25 opposition leaders accused of corruption who later joined the ruling BJP saw their cases dropped or resolved in their favor.

The Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act of 2013 created independent national and state bodies tasked with receiving complaints of corruption against public servants or politicians, investigating claims, and pursuing convictions through the courts. However, state-level Lokayuktas frequently operate with few staff members, key vacancies go unfilled for long periods, and Lokayuktas hear few complaints.

The public has some access to information about government activity, but the legal framework meant to ensure transparency has been eroded in recent years.

Millions of requests are made annually under the 2005 Right to Information (RTI) Act, and responses have been used to improve transparency and expose corrupt activities. However, most requesters do not receive the information sought, including those seeking information about core government policies, and noncompliant officials generally go unpunished. Dozens of right-to-information users and activists have been murdered since the RTI Act’s introduction, and hundreds have been assaulted or harassed. In November 2023, the government exempted the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team from complying with the RTI Act, reducing transparency in cybersecurity-related matters.

National and state-level information commissions are hampered by staff vacancies. The 2014 Whistleblowers Protection Act was regarded as limited in scope.

Segments of private media remain vigorous and diverse, and investigations and scrutiny of politicians do occur. However, attacks on press freedom have escalated dramatically under the Modi government, and reporting has become significantly less ambitious in recent years. Hindu nationalist campaigns aimed at discouraging forms of expression deemed “antinational” have exacerbated self-censorship. Online disinformation from inauthentic sources is ubiquitous ahead of elections. Separately, revelations of close relationships between politicians, business executives, and lobbyists on one hand, and leading media personalities and owners of media outlets on the other, have dented public confidence in the press. Journalists risk harassment, death threats, and physical violence in the course of their work. Such attacks are rarely punished, and some have taken place with the complicity or active participation of police.

Authorities have used security, defamation, sedition, hate-speech laws, and contempt-of-court charges to quiet critical voices in the media. In August 2024, widespread criticism led the government to withdraw a proposed broadcasting bill that press freedom advocates cautioned would allow authorities to exert greater control over online content, potentially stifling independent journalism.

In February 2023, tax officials raided the BBC’s Delhi and Mumbai offices, a month after the government moved to stop the dissemination of a documentary critical of Modi.

While Hindus make up about 80 percent of the population, the Indian state is formally secular, and freedom of religion is constitutionally guaranteed. However, a number of Hindu nationalist organizations and some media outlets promote anti-Muslim views, a practice that the Modi government has been accused of encouraging. Attacks against Muslims and others in connection with the alleged slaughter or mistreatment of cows, which are held to be sacred by Hindus, continued in 2024. The BJP has faced criticism for failing to mount an adequate response to cow-related violence.

Legislation in several states criminalizes religious conversions that take place as a result of “force” or “allurement,” which can be broadly interpreted to prosecute proselytizers. Some states require government permission for conversion.

Communal rioting between Hindus and Muslims occurred in multiple states. Such riots have been sparked by provocative processions during Hindu festivals that are apparently planned to aggravate religious tensions. The inauguration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, in January triggered communal unrest, including vandalism and assaults targeting Muslims and other religious minorities across the country.

Members of the predominantly Hindu Meitei and largely Christian Kuki communities continued to clash in Manipur throughout 2024, following violence that began in May 2023 over a court order granting scheduled-tribe status to the Meitei. As many as 60,000 people were internally displaced as of November 2024. At least 250 people had reportedly died as of mid-2024, with the majority of casualties from the Kuki community.

Academic freedom has significantly weakened in recent years, as professors, students, and institutions have faced intimidation over political and religious issues. Members of the student wing of the National Volunteer Association—a Hindu nationalist organization from which the ruling BJP is widely regarded to have grown—have engaged in violence on campuses across the country, including attacks on students and professors. University administrators and faculty have been investigated, disciplined, or compelled to step down owing to their perceived political views. Academics are pressured to avoid topics deemed sensitive by the BJP government, particularly India’s relations with Pakistan and conditions in Indian Kashmir. The heads of prestigious academic institutions are increasingly selected for their loyalty to the ruling party.

Personal expression and private discussion in India are somewhat constrained. Colonial-era and other laws are often invoked in order to penalize perceived criticism of the government by ordinary citizens. Activists, Muslims, and members of other marginalized communities are routinely charged with sedition for criticizing the government and its policies. In 2022, the Supreme Court put the colonial-era sedition law under review. Last year, the BJP government proposed a new antisedition law, which critics said was effectively the same as the colonial-era law. In December 2023, the bill was passed, and the new law took effect in July 2024. Concerns remain that the updated law will continue to allow the suppression of dissent under different terminology.

Online “troll armies” associated with the BJP routinely harass individuals—notably Muslims—and organizations for voicing criticism of the government and for engaging in behavior that supposedly deviates from Hindu orthodoxy.

The government has imposed rules that increase social media companies’ liability for material posted on their platforms and effectively encourage aggressive content restrictions. In August 2023, Parliament passed the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA), which regulates the collection and storage of individuals’ personal data, allows the government to more easily engage in surveillance, and gives broad latitude to the state in terms of implementation. This has prompted fears among critics about state overreach and the undermining of citizens’ privacy rights. At the same time, detailed rules for the law have yet to be issued, hampering implementation.

A nationwide Central Monitoring System is meant to enable authorities to intercept digital communications in real time without judicial oversight. In 2021, a collaborative investigation by news organizations revealed that the government had likely planted Pegasus spyware on the mobile devices of more than 300 prominent individuals. In October 2023, Apple informed a group of prominent Indian users, including parliamentarians, that state actors had tried to hack into their mobile phones. In April 2024, Apple alerted users in India and 91 other countries about possible “mercenary spyware attacks,” underscoring persistent worries about digital surveillance.

Score Change: The score declined from 3 to 2 due to laws, online harassment, and surveillance revelations that discourage free expression.

There are legal restrictions on freedom of assembly, including a provision of the criminal procedure code that empowers authorities to restrict public gatherings and impose curfews whenever “immediate prevention or speedy remedy” is required.

While peaceful demonstrations regularly take place, the national government and some state governments are known to employ assembly bans, internet disruptions, and force to quell protests, while protesters have faced harsh treatment and have been denied access to legal counsel.

In February 2024 authorities invoked Section 144 of the criminal code, which prohibits gatherings of more than four people under certain circumstances, across multiple regions, restricted internet access, and used force to break up protests during the “Dilli Chalo” farmers’ march.

A wide variety of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) operate, but some, particularly those involved in the investigation of human rights abuses, continue to face threats, legal harassment, excessive police force, and occasionally lethal violence.

Under certain circumstances, the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) of 2010 permits the national government to deny NGOs access to foreign funding. Authorities have been accused of using this power selectively against perceived political opponents. In 2022, the government said it had cancelled the FCRA registrations of 6,677 NGOs between 2017 and 2021. In April 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs canceled the FCRA licenses of five prominent NGOs—the CNI Synodical Board of Social Service, the Voluntary Health Association of India, the Indo-Global Social Service Society, the Church’s Auxiliary for Social Action, and the Evangelical Fellowship of India—citing improper use of foreign funding contributions.

Although workers in the formal economy regularly exercise their rights to bargain collectively and strike, laws including the Essential Services Maintenance Act have enabled the government to ban certain strikes. Public employees have more limited organizing rights, and private employers are not legally obliged to recognize unions or engage in bargaining.

The judiciary is formally independent of the political branches of government. Judges, particularly in the Supreme Court, have traditionally displayed autonomy. However, lower levels of the judiciary suffer from corruption, and the courts have shown signs of increasing politicization. The government has also made judicial appointments that observers consider political in nature.

Due process rights are not consistently upheld. Citizens face substantial obstacles in the pursuit of justice, including demands for bribes and difficulty getting the police to file a First Information Report, which is necessary to trigger an investigation of an alleged crime. Corruption within the police force remains a problem. The justice system is severely backlogged and understaffed, leading to lengthy pretrial detention for suspects, many of whom remain in jail longer than the duration of any sentence they might receive if convicted. A number of security laws allow detention without charge or based on vaguely defined offenses.

Torture, abuse, and rape by law enforcement and security officials have been reported. Abuses by prison staff against people in custody, particularly those belonging to marginalized groups, are common.

Security forces battling regional insurgencies have been implicated in extrajudicial killings, rape, torture, kidnappings, and destruction of homes. The criminal procedure code requires that the government approve the prosecution of security personnel; approval is rarely granted, leading to impunity.

The Maoist insurgency in the east-central hills region of India continues. Among other abuses, the rebels have allegedly imposed illegal taxes, seized food and places of shelter, and engaged in abduction and forced recruitment of children and adults. Local civilians and journalists who are perceived to be progovernment have been attacked. Tens of thousands of civilians have been displaced by the violence and live in government-run camps. The government escalated its efforts against Maoist insurgents in 2024, and 162 Maoist deaths were recorded by July, mostly in Chhattisgarh. The number marked the highest toll for the insurgents since 2009.

Separately, in India’s seven northeastern states, more than 40 insurgent factions—seeking either greater autonomy or complete independence for their ethnic or tribal groups—continue to attack security forces and engage in intertribal violence. Such fighters have been implicated in bombings, killings, abductions, and rapes of civilians, and they operate extensive extortion networks.

The constitution bars caste-based discrimination, and laws impose quotas in education and government jobs for historically underprivileged scheduled tribes, Dalits, and groups categorized by the government as “other backward classes” and “Economically Weaker Sections.” However, members of these populations face routine discrimination and violence, and the criminal justice system fails to provide equal protection to marginalized groups. The Supreme Court, in October 2024, instructed the government to remove prisoners’ caste details from records and revise prison regulations to eliminate caste-based tasks, highlighting entrenched discrimination within the penal system.

In parts of the country, particularly in rural areas, informal community councils issue edicts concerning social customs. Their decisions sometimes result in violence or persecution aimed at those perceived to have transgressed social norms, especially women and members of scheduled castes. Other forms of discrimination faced by women include workplace bias and sexual harassment. LGBT+ people face discrimination, and sometimes violence.

The constitution grants citizens the right to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India. However, freedom of movement is hampered in some areas by insurgent violence or communal tensions.

The Indian government has used the revocation of Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) status to target critics, including academics, journalists, and activists, for their dissenting views, effectively resulting in restrictions on their movement.

Although the legal framework generally supports the right to own property and engage in private business activity, property rights are somewhat tenuous for tribal groups and other marginalized communities. Members of these groups are often denied adequate resettlement opportunities and compensation when their lands are seized for development projects. Muslim personal-status laws and traditional Hindu practices discriminate against women in terms of property rights and inheritance.

In 2024, property demolitions in Haryana, largely targeting Muslims, followed Hindu-Muslim clashes linked to a religious march by an extremist Hindu group. In a significant ruling in November 2024, the Supreme Court condemned illegal demolitions, sometimes referred to as “bulldozer justice,” requiring due process and accountability from public officials. The decision reinforced legal protections and the constitutional right to shelter.

Rape and other sexual abuse are serious problems, and scheduled-caste and tribal women are especially vulnerable. The criminal justice system and prominent politicians have been repeatedly faulted for their poor handling of such matters. In August 2024, a 31-year-old postgraduate trainee doctor in Kolkata was raped and murdered, leading to public outcry and protests.

Though the practice is criminalized, dowry demands surrounding marriage persist, sometimes resulting in violence. A 2006 law banned dowry-related harassment, widened the definition of domestic violence to include emotional or verbal abuse, and criminalized spousal sexual violence, but enforcement is reportedly poor.

Same-sex marriage is not legal in India. In 2022, the Supreme Court expanded the official definition of the family to include same-sex parents and other households that had been deemed “atypical.”

Several states have passed or proposed laws meant to stem the alleged practice of “love jihad”—a baseless conspiracy theory according to which Muslims marry Hindu women with the goal of converting them to Islam. The legislation effectively created obstacles to interfaith marriages and raised the risk of legal penalties, harassment, and violence for interfaith couples.

Muslim personal-status laws and traditional Hindu practices feature gender discrimination on matters such as marriage, divorce, and child custody. The malign neglect of female children after birth remains a concern, as does the banned use of prenatal sex-determination tests to selectively abort female fetuses.

The constitution bans human trafficking, and bonded labor is illegal, but estimates of the number of workers still affected by the practice reach the tens of millions.

A 2016 law allows children below the age of 14 to engage in “home-based work,” as well as other occupations between the ages of 14 and 18. Children are not permitted to work in potentially hazardous industries, though the rule is routinely flouted.

Investigations in 2024 highlighted labor abuses in Maharashtra’s sugar mills, drawing global attention and condemnation.

There have been reports of complicity by law enforcement officials in human trafficking.