Democracy and democratic governments have been the subjects of much scholarly attention both in India and elsewhere in the world. This focus on democracy may be due to the success of democracy both as an ideal, and as a set of political institutions in a large number of countries, including underdeveloped countries of the world. Whether as an ideal or as a set of institutions that enables the realization of ends, it is the ability of the democratic political process to allow political principals to participate, directly or indirectly, in shaping their destiny, that accounts for the popularity of democratic governance. Even in countries where democratic forms of government do not exist, there is an aspiration among citizens to realize it. In fact, in the recent Freedom House Survey, about 123 countries have been categorized as partial or complete democracy. At the same time, there is disillusionment with the practice of democracy – a gap between the expectation and the outcome of democratic governance.

In actualizing the ends of democracy, political institutions play a pivotal role. In most post-colonial societies like India, the process of social change and transformation has been initiated through institutions. Political institutions are thus both agents and representatives of societal transformation. As such, institutional composition and functioning provide a good indication of the extent of democratization. In this context, three aspects of democracy – permeability of institution, representativeness and efficiency need to be understood as separate categories.