Hanibal - I agree with you that democracy can be captured by a countries elite - and for all of South Asia this is true. However, in India you find some places where democracy actually does work. Take Kerala for example the state has better literacy and health indicators than many over developed countries.
You say you’re not going to compare India with Pakistan because we have our own set of problems - and India being the biggest democracy in the world should have some clearer goals and goods delivered to its people. I agree with the latter part - but in the former part why are you holding India to a higher moral/ethical standard than Pakistan? Just because they’re bigger?
Again, Indian democracy - however flawed it may be - is better than what we have.