'National Democratic Alliance' is a misnomer for two reasons. First, the coalition, headed by a predatory Bharatiya Janata Party, is not quite democratic. The BJP lords over, electorally and otherwise, the handful of allies that remain in the alliance. Second, the NDA is not characterised by the brotherhood that should ideally be a feature of such coalitions. The BJP, secure in its numerical strength, seldom passes the chance to needle its allies. Consider its latest sparring with the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, its principal ally in southern India. First, the Union home minister entreated voters in Tamil Nadu to fetch a handsome electoral kitty for the NDA in the next general elections in return for Narendra Modi’s installation of the sengol in Parliament. This plea, expectedly, ruffled feathers in the AIADMK: Tamil Nadu, after all, is supposed to be its fief. Matters took a turn for the worse when the state BJP president referred — indirectly — to J. Jayalalithaa’s conviction in a case of disproportionate assets. An outraged AIADMK passed a resolution against the BJP’s alleged attempt to malign its tallest leader: in response, the BJP has dug in its heels.

The drama, however, may not be politically expedient for either party. The AIADMK, weakened by factionalism and boxed to a corner of the political ring by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, needs some leverage from New Delhi: the BJP is the obvious choice. But it is not as if the saffron party is in a position to call the shots vis-à-vis its Dravidian partner. Having lost Karnataka, its need for an all-weather friend in the South is acute. Worryingly, in the course of Narendra Modi’s reign, the BJP has lost some of its older allies, including the Janata Dal (United) and the Shiromani Akali Dal. An estrangement with the AIADMK would not only dent the BJP’s credentials as a reliable friend but also undermine its efforts to mend fences with disgruntled allies before the Lok Sabha. The NDA’s shrinking in size can be attributed to a BJP, which, unlike its earlier avatar, is more interested in the pursuit of political hegemony. As Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena and Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) have learnt, the BJP under Mr Modi is skilled in deepening its political imprint at the expense of its regional friends. Will the AIADMK heed their lessons?