This topical and absorbing book, written by two eminent journalists, explains why India has entered a new era of coalition politics and analyses the consequences and implications of this relatively recent phenomenon. Transition from single party domination to multi-party configurations or coalitions, the authors argue, is neither temporary nor an aberration. Dismissing the notion of bi-polarity, and resting the debate on whether coalition governments are here to stay, the authors debate on whether coalitions are at best a necessary evil or are better than single-party governments.