India, March 27 -- Elections in India are notable for their volatility; voters' choices are notoriously difficult to predict, with large swings from one election to the next. Adding to this uncertainty is the fact that historically, party brands are weak and official party membership is low. It is no wonder then that partisanship has not featured prominently in discussions of contemporary Indian politics. In political science parlance, the term "partisanship" is used to describe the stable and emotional attachment that some voters feel toward political parties. This emotional attachment, which transcends mere support for the party at the ballot, is prevalent among voters in most parts of the world and affects political discourse and behaviour in fundamental ways....