India, May 11 -- President Donald Trump initiated a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz to pressure Iran into a deal-one nation exerting pressure on another. In West Bengal during the 2026 Assembly elections, a different kind of blockade unfolded: one by the Union against its own constituent state. While the former continues without resolution, the latter, despite electoral resistance, ultimately prevailed under conditions that raise profound questions about the state of democracy-questions that must be addressed before democratic institutions are reduced to mere formality.

What unfolded was not an overt coup. Democracy was not overthrown; it was undermined through files, classifications, tribunals, enforcement agencies, and calibrated adm...