The fabled battlefields of history are mostly to the northwest, or elsewhere. But post-independence, these vast Gangetic plains have hosted the decisive contests. To that extent, with just the latter part of winter left before Uttar Pradesh votes—an event whose significance will go way beyond the fact of a new government being elected—it’s surprising that no election banners or posters have appeared in its town streets. A few old Diwali buntings or New Year fliers flutter in the cold air. Like a deathly calm before the storm, perhaps. The only consensus: the playing field is a triangle of shifting proportions. Akhilesh Yadav, rather than the Samajwadi Party, will be trying to hold out against the BJP and the Bahujan Samaj Party, and the odds lengthen or otherwise unpredictably.