India’s Election Has a Transparency Problem

If the nervousness in the stock market is anything to go by, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s bid for a third term doesn’t appear to be as secure as it did earlier this year. But regardless of who wins when ballots are counted June 4, the country’s besieged democracy is the biggest loser. And the blame for that falls squarely on the organization responsible for ensuring a free and fair poll: the Election Commission of India.

Conducted over six weeks in seven phases amid a debilitating heat wave, the vote has been the most hate-filled since India held its first general election as an independent republic in 1951-52. Instead of focusing on their own policies, Modi and his Hindu right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party have run a polarizing campaign that — in the process of attacking his political opponents — vilified the Muslim community, India’s largest religious minority.