Coalitions and the economy

The economy is relatively immune to whether the political regime in New Delhi is weak or strong. It has become Central government-proof

Are coalition governments bad for the economy? This question has arisen because of the high probability that the coming Lok Sabha election may give us a hung parliament. The concern is not about nominal coalitions like what we have now but weak coalitions where power is dispersed among many partners.

We have had several such weak coalitions in the past. The first was the Janata government, which took office in March 1977 after the emergency and lasted for about two and a half years. The second was the short-lived government headed initially by V P Singh, which was in power for