Some won. Some lost. Chandrababu Naidu alone triumphed yesterday. Twenty years after his defeat in Andhra Pradesh, he is exactly where he yearned all these years to be: not only in power in his state, but also in the position to decide who wields it in New Delhi.

Modi’s fate is largely in Naidu’s hands. Yesterday’s elaborate address by the prime minister to his party was meant really for his coalition partners. Naidu, who in some ways still looks down on Modi, knows that the prime minister is unworthy of his support. He remembers Modi’s record of treachery, the broken promises of support for Andhra, and the gratuitous slights that ultimately prompted him to break from the prime minister. What Modi, steeped for so long in hubris, does not know is Naidu’s flair for vengeance.

The prime minister was addicted to portraying himself as a man of destiny. He is today a frightened mouse negotiating for life with the paws of a stern cat. Nothing is certain in life - but I suspect Naidu will spare him. He will extract all he can from him. And then, when there’s nothing left to take, he will discard him. Naidu is a veteran of this sport. Modi will learn that he, for all his lucky successes, is a neophyte.

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