Narendra Modi and his party have rewritten India's political handbook

India is the world's largest democracy. It scores well on international democracy ranking measures, voter turnout rates have risen, and the electorate has become savvier at using the political system.

This political empowerment has resulted in the proliferation of parties at the centre and the state level. But since the election of the Bharatiya Janata Party's Narendra Modi as head of a single-party government in 2014 (the first since 1984), many academics and activists have raised concerns about Hindu "majoritarianism" and its challenge to democracy and the rule of law.