Elections in India are considered democratic for the following reasons:

• Independent Election Commission: In India, elections are conducted by the Election Commission (EC), which is a permanent and independent organization established under Article 324 of the Indian Constitution to ensure free and fair elections. It has superintendence, direction, and control over elections to parliament, state legislatures, the office of president of India, and the office of vice-president of India.

• Right to vote: Each citizen has the right to vote, i.e. to choose their representative, without discrimination, and to consider their vote equal. It allows voters and parties to hold elections openly and equally. It also offers a range of options for residents to select their representatives.

• Peoples participation: Peoples participation in the election is measured by voter turnout figures. Turnout indicates the percentage of eligible voters who actually cast their vote. In India, the poor, illiterate, and underprivileged people vote in larger proportion as compared to the rich and privileged sections. Common people in India feel that through elections they can bring pressure on political parties to adopt policies and programs favorable to them. The interest of voters in election-related activities has been increasing over the years.

• Acceptance of Election Outcome: The final test of a free and fair election in India is the outcome of the election. The defeated party accepts the electoral outcomes as peoples verdicts. It is the peoples choice of which party they want to win. In the US, the sitting elected candidates rarely lose an election. In India, about half of the sitting MPs or MLAs lose elections. The ruling parties often lose elections in India both at the national and state level. Candidates who have spent a lot of money on buying votes and those with known criminal connections often lose elections.

• Regular conduct of elections: In India, elections are conducted regularly after every 5 years of interval.

• Model code of conduct: All political parties have to follow the model code of conduct during the election campaign.

In summary, elections in India are considered democratic because of the independent Election Commission, the right to vote, peoples participation, acceptance of election outcome, regular conduct of elections, and the model code of conduct.