Seven Decades of Democracy: Indias Political Evolution and the Road Ahead

India’s democratic journey since 1947 represents one of the most significant experiments in post-colonial democratic governance. This paper analyses India’s political evolution through distinct phases of democratic development, examining how institutional changes, electoral dynamics, and socio-political transformations have shaped the contemporary democratic framework. Employing Linz and Stepan’s democratic consolidation framework alongside Kohli’s institutional analysis, the study traces India’s transition from the Congress-dominance system through coalition politics to contemporary democratic challenges. The research examines persistent tensions between democratic deepening and institutional erosion, investigating how Indian democracy navigated crises while maintaining electoral continuity. Drawing on comparative democratisation literature and contemporary political developments, the paper concludes by assessing prospects for democratic resilience amid emerging challenges of political polarisation, technological disruption, and institutional decay. The study contributes to understanding how large, diverse democracies sustain legitimacy while managing pluralistic complexities in rapidly changing global contexts.