By Stephen Rapp, Senior Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Ethics, Law and Armed Conflict at the Blavatnik School, as part of the International Peace Programme.

As Ursula von der Leyen deepens EU–India ties, Europe faces a strategic choice: treat democratic erosion in the world’s largest democracy as a side issue — or recognise it as central to long-term stability, trust and global influence.

As European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visits India to take part in the country’s 77th Republic Day celebrations — marking the adoption of a Constitution that defines India as a sovereign, secular and democratic republic — the timing could hardly be more symbolic. Even as Europe seeks closer economic and strategic cooperation with New Delhi, India is confronting a quiet but consequential weakening of its democratic institutions.

Von der Leyen’s focus will understandably be on trade, supply chains and geopolitics. Strengthening economic ties with the world’s fastest-growing major economy makes strategic sense at a time of global uncertainty. But if Europe’s engagement with India is reduced to commerce alone, it risks overlooking a deeper issue, with long-term consequences: the steady erosion of democratic checks and balances in the world’s largest democracy.

India’s democratic decline has not taken the form of coups or emergency rule. Instead, it is unfolding through the gradual hollowing out of institutions meant to safeguard constitutional governance. Similar to what we have witnessed in Hungary in Europe.

Independent assessments underline this trend. CIVICUS has classified India’s civic space as “repressed” for six consecutive years. The Election Commission of India (ECI), once widely respected at home and abroad, now faces persistent allegations of politicisation and bias. India’s media landscape has narrowed sharply: journalists face raids, lawsuits and intimidation, while concentrated ownership and political alignment have reduced space for independent reporting. Reporters Without Borders now describes press freedom in India as being in crisis.

Republic Day is meant to celebrate India’s founding promise of pluralism, the rule of law and institutional independence. Yet the gap between that promise and present reality is widening.

Recent elections in the eastern state of Bihar illustrate how institutional erosion plays out in practice. In the weeks before voting, the Election Commission launched a “Special Intensive Revision” of electoral rolls, ostensibly to update voter lists. The timing and execution of the exercise triggered widespread criticism.

A leading civil society election monitoring panel concluded at the end of the Bihar elections (IPMIE) in November 2025, “the conduct of the Election Commission of India throughout the Bihar election was deeply concerning, and raised troubling questions about its impartiality and institutional integrity”.

Allegations included centralised voter roll manipulation, targeted deletions disproportionately affecting minorities, and unresolved concerns about transparency, data protection and accountability. This politicisation of the ECI is another example of how other national institutions have been compromised.

The ECI was once among India’s most trusted institutions, admired globally for managing elections in a vast and diverse democracy. Critics link this decline to legal changes introduced in 2023 that gave the executive effective control over appointments to the Election Commission, replacing a more independent process. The weakening of one institution has been mirrored across others.

India’s Supreme Court, long regarded as a cornerstone of constitutionalism, has also come under scrutiny. Most recently, it again denied bail to student leaders detained for more than five years without trial for peacefully protesting discriminatory citizenship laws. International experts have warned that opaque judicial appointments, executive influence and post-retirement incentives undermine the real and perceived independence of the judiciary.

Other accountability institutions have fared no better. Concerns about politicisation have led to the downgrading of India’s National Human Rights Commission in international accreditation. Meanwhile, UN human rights bodies have expressed “significant concerns” about freedom of expression and assembly, as well as attacks on NGOs and human rights defenders.

Pressure on land and environmental defenders has also intensified, further narrowing democratic space. Last week, climate activist Harjeet Singh, co-founder of the organisation Satat Sampada, had his home raided by police over claims that his campaigning for a treaty to cut the use of fossil fuels was undermining the national interest. Singh has challenged industrial projects affecting local communities. As development projects are fast-tracked in the name of growth and strategic interest, environmental dissenters are labelled as anti-nationals.

Why should Europe care?

Because India is not just another trading partner. It is a regional power, a strategic actor and home to nearly one-fifth of the world’s population. Democratic erosion in a country of this scale has global consequences. An India drifting toward autocracy would weaken democratic norms internationally, embolden illiberal leaders elsewhere and complicate Europe’s efforts to defend a rules-based international order.

European leaders often argue that engagement, not isolation, is the most effective way to influence partners. But engagement without principles is unlikely to strengthen democracy. The EU has leverage — through market access, investment, technology cooperation and political legitimacy. Using that leverage would be prudent.

As Ursula von der Leyen deepens economic cooperation with India, Europe’s message should be clear: a strong EU–India relationship is not only about growth figures and supply chains, but about democratic resilience. Encouraging India to reinforce, rather than hollow out, its democratic institutions is in Europe’s strategic interest — and in India’s own.

The article expresses personal views.