The National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s victory in Bihar represents a well curated strategy for success. Two elements of this strategy merit attention and deeper analysis. The first is the near-perfect chemistry within the winning alliance and its visible absence in the Mahagatbandhan (MGB). All the partners in the NDA contributed to its success, while in the case of the MGB, much of the shoring up of the alliance was left to the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). There was inter-dependence among the partners in terms of seat allocation within the NDA. However, in the MGB, there was again an overwhelming dependence on the RJD.

Second, key leaders in the NDA directed both the campaign of the alliance and that of individual partners. This was a recipe for victory. The fact that the NDA is the r

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