New Delhi, March 18 -- As the assembly election in West Bengal, one of India's most politically volatile states, just weeks away, the eastern border state finds itself firmly in the grip of election fever. The political climate has thickened with allegations and counter-allegations, recriminations and rhetoric-each day adding fresh layers of noise to an already charged atmosphere.

Amid this din, a recent interview provided a telling glimpse into the state's prevailing political culture. The interviewee was a very senior leader from the state; the interviewer, a journalist of national standing. Regrettably, the exchange yielded little of substance-an outcome emblematic of the deeper poverty of political discourse that continues to afflict...