Question

what makes an election democratic?

Answer 1

There are countries where elections are held but they cannot be called democratic elections. The minimum conditions of a democratic election: ... that is Political parties and candidates should be free to contest elections giving the voters a real choice. Elections should be held at regular intervals.

Answer 2

There are a lot of reasons that make the elections in India democratic.

There is an election commission in India that ensures the fair functioning of the process of elections.
From filing the name of the candidate to the time of counting the votes, the electoral commission works a lot for the proper execution of the elections.
Electronic voting machines are used for the process of casting the votes which are stand alone devices and hence non hackable and so, the process is fair.
In India there are a lot of candidates who are ready to serve the country if they come to power. Hence the voters have the power to choose from a lot of options.
There is also a NOTA i.e. none of the above button just in case people are not satisfied by any of the participants .
Many practices do take place which hamper the proper functioning of elections and the electoral commission prevents it to keep the system as democratic as possible.