As part of a study of politics in two Indian cities, members of the municipal councils were asked to respond to sociometric items dealing with deference and friendship among members of these local bodies. An index of group cohesion was used to measure responses to these items in terms of two major variables in Indian political life: caste and party. While these variables appear to be important in the identification of friends, with party being slightlymoreimportant than caste, they seem less meaningful in matters of deference. An explanation for this disparity is proposed based on the characteristics of those who scored highest on the deference item.