New Delhi, Dec. 29 -- Commenting on the politics of a Western democracy where he resides, my old friend Sanjay Krishnan remarked that the liberal party there is caught in quicksand. The more vigorously it tries to save itself, the deeper it sinks. It needed a different strategy.

The scene is somewhat similar in India, where opposition parties are vociferous about different things on different days to such an extent that it is hard to see what they are really against and even what they are really for.

First, a disclaimer: I am neither an expert in electoral politics nor an analyst of the internal politics of our political parties. I am rather uninterested in them and not too concerned about the fortunes of this leader or that faction.

I...