This is our third cover featuring Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh since the UPA coalition came to power a year ago. Each one has depicted an unfolding story. Our first cover, in May 2004, carried the headline, "Sonia's PM". Then, in August 2004, 100 days later, our cover headline read: "The Odd Couple". The story examined an all-important question: Who ran the Government? Our conclusion then was that the chemistry was working "because the prime minister stays out of the limelight while projecting her as the face of the UPA. He makes her feel secure". In my letter, I concluded with the caution "at least for now".

PICTURE SPEAK

Our previous Sonia-Manmohan covers

Almost a year into the partnership, there are clear signs of wires getting crossed and frequent friction that spells trouble for the UPA Government. India's current political set-up is a curious one and the roots of the disconnect lie in its very structure. The UPA coalition is made up of contrasting political groups and divergent personalities. Even though the Congress is in power, the Congress president is not the prime minister. The party is still evolving under Sonia's reclusive brand of leadership and there is no clear-cut pattern for interaction between the party and the Government. While Sonia maintains she is only chairperson of the National Advisory Council, the fact remains that it is the signals emanating from 10 Janpath that, to a large extent, dictate the Government's handling of key issues. The result is the party finds itself at odds with the PMO, and there is a growing number of examples indicating this.

Our cover story was put together by Editor Prabhu Chawla and Associate Editor Bhavdeep Kang, who met with cabinet ministers, party functionaries, senior bureaucrats and discovered that the tension between the political establishment and the Government was very real. Says Chawla: "Ministers and civil servants are hamstrung by this confusion. One can see frustration among those who are expected to take swift decisions."

The problem is that the culture of the Congress and Manmohan's own low-key style demand that the party, namely Sonia, is the tail that wags the Government. Having been madam's choice for prime minister and with no political base of his own, Manmohan will perforce have to listen to that "inner voice" on key issues of governance. Till now, however, it has not affected the Government's stability in a major way. It has, however, resulted in embarrassment and loss of credibility. Politics may make for odd bedfellows but when the bedfellows are at odds it makes for bad governance.

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