India, June 14 -- When Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in for a third consecutive term on June 9, 2024, the ceremony attracted a usual pageantry of commentary. The opposition made comparisons to Nehru, questioned the Prime Minister's mandate, attempted to poke holes in electoral propriety and debated coalition arithmetic. What received less attention was the democratic significance of the moment. India had, for the first time in decades, returned the same leader to office three times in a row. This return had not occurred as a result of the absence of an opposition, but through the persistence of electoral preference.

This is a reality that was and remains one that is worth sitting with. India is not a country that hands out polit...