How to make friends durable political coalitions are hard to create as clashing ambitions often sink them

How to make friends durable political coalitions are hard to create as clashing ambitions often sink them

Recent political developments in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu offer insights on the complexities of coalition politics. In TN, C Ponnaiyan, organisation secretary of AIADMK, said that political ally BJP is trying to grow at the expense of his party. Soon after, leaders in both parties tried to paper over the cracks but the cracks will likely show again. In Karnataka, former chief minister HD Kumaraswamy of JD(S) claimed that he allowed his 14-month coalition government with Congress to crumble in 2019 on account of the mounting frustration in trying to manage the partnership.

Durable political coalitions are infrequent in India. Among types of coalitions, ones between national parties and regional outfits are perhaps the hardest to manage. Take the case of the AIADMK and BJP. There’s a reasonable degree of congruence on key political issues, but that inevitably leads to at least partial overlap in terms of the social coalition they wish to stitch. An ambitious national party trying to expand its footprint will lead to frayed ties. The acrimonious fallout between BJP and Shiv Sena, long-standing allies, was partly caused by clashing ambitions.

The seemingly unwieldy coalition governments at the Centre between 1998 and 2014 were perhaps an aberration. Successful coalitions are also about partners reining in ambitions, something the Congress-JD(S) in Karnataka did not do. The experience of political parties in these two states provides a sense of the scale of the challenge opposition parties have in trying to create a common platform to take on BJP in 2024 general election. However, if accommodation is hard to realise, Maharashtra provides an example of another kind of trigger to coalesce. The fear of being overrun by a juggernaut is the glue that binds the constituents of the improbable Maha Vikas Aghadi.