If Manmohan Singh, India's prime minister, loses tomorrow's parliamentary vote of confidence, snap elections will follow. The vote, called after Mr Singh's communist allies withdrew support for his Congress party-led government in a row over its attempts to conclude a nuclear co-operation deal with the US, represents an opportunity. Whatever the outcome of the vote, the communists' stranglehold over the economy has gone.

Mr Singh's record over the past four years has been one of stagnation and unfulfilled ambition. The opposition of the leftist parties to his market-oriented reforms is one reason why he has been a disappointment in office.