India's regional political landscape has long been a family business. The National Conference belongs to the Abdullahs, the Samajwadi Party to the Yadavs, the RJD to the Lalus, the DMK to the Karunanidhis and Stalins, the Akali Dal to the Badals, and Shiv Sena - well, the Thackerays kept it until they couldn't. The pattern is unmistakable: charismatic founders, dynastic succession, and an iron grip on party machinery that leaves little room for internal democracy.