Political Diary
New Delhi, 22 January 2011
PM Reshuffles Team
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
By Poonam I Kaushish
It was billed as an exercise to give a much-needed make-over
to a battered UPA II Government. Pummeled by a united Opposition onslaught over
corruption charges, ministerial bickering and tussle between the Manmohan Singh-led
Administration and Sonia Gandhi’s Congress. At the end, the first reshuffle of
the Council of Ministers, 18 months after it returned to power in May 2009,
turned out to be much ado about nothing. Of putting old stale wine in more
decayed bottles!
It saw the induction of three new faces, elevation of five Ministers,
three to Cabinet rank, and easing the burden of Ministers holding more than two
portfolios. Sadly, if the Prime Minister’s aim was to bridge his team’s
widening credibility deficit, infuse meritocratic fresh talent with out-of-the
box thinking and send a message of efficiency it failed miserably.
No Ministers were dropped for non-performance, graft or
crony capitalism but merely ‘kicked upstairs’ or shunted elsewhere. More. The
exercise ended up as a retrogressive division of Ministries along regional, casteist,
quota-type politics. Revealing more than it concealed: a severe talent-deficit
within the Congress whereby Manmohan Singh was hamstrung in reshuffling his
pack.
Two, the Party’s focus is to close ranks and resist the
Opposition onslaught in the ensuing Budget session of Parliament. Three,
already grappling with Andhra MPs’ threatening to pull out thus endangering the
Government, wisdom did not dictate a prudent to rock the ministerial boat and
open another front of disgruntled Ministers by sacking them.
However, if sacking of Ministers was avoided to preempt the
possibility of internal strife in the Party, the half-hearted reshuffle may not
achieve the purpose. The opposition to Manmohan Singh and his Government within
the Congress is more potent than even the Opposition parties. Remember the
Digvijay Singh-Chidambaram, Kamal Nath-Jairam Ramesh, Prithviraj Chauhan-
Jairam Ramesh tu-tu-mein-mein. What to speak of Sonia-Singh and Sonia-Rahul
disagreement over who should be in or out of Singh’s team.
In the process, it has left a trail of sulking Ministers.
Even a promotion to the Cabinet rank failed to cheer up Salman Khurshid. Expecting
to take over the law portfolio from Veerappa Moily he got Water Resources.
Virbhadra Singh made his anger known for being shifted from steel to micro,
small and medium industries. “I was a Minster of State for Industries in Indira
Gandhi Government’s in 1980,” he said. Beni Prasad Verma too joined the
dissatisfied chorus. “I held a full-fledged Cabinet rank 14 years ago, today am
only a MoS for steel with independent charge.” Ditto the case with Shrikant
Jena who in 2009 was promised that justice would be done to him.
Murli Deora’s demotion from Petroleum to Corporate Affairs is
due to his being a family friend of Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani, which has
a huge presence in the oil sector. Khurshid too enjoyed close ties with Anil
Ambani whereby his associate was reportedly appointed to a senior position in
his group after he was made Corporate Affairs Minister.
Besides, one fails to understand logic of shifting those who
were set to get the axe. Like M S Gill who loses sports, turns number cruncher
with statistics and programme implementation, Moily continues as Law minister,
and S M Krishna retains Foreign Affairs.
Also, the reshuffle throws up more questions than answers.
The imprint of Sonia and fierce internal Congress politics was on display in
the reshuffle. Kerala's Vayalar Ravi is a good man. But is he good enough for
civil aviation? How will CP Joshi manage road, transport and highways on being
shunted out of rural development where his "intemperate" work style
messed up things?
Murli Deora's transfer from petroleum to corporate affairs
has also raised eyebrows. In his new role, he'd be less of a patron and more of
a facilitator. Leaving most wondering whether they were being punished or
rewarded? Vilasrao Deshmukh's slate isn't speck-less clean and he is
not-known-for his efficiency. Under his rule Maharahstra's coffers touched rock
bottom.
Further, that the forthcoming State elections in UP and Kerala
were weighing heavy on Manmohan-Sonia-Rahul’s mind is evident from the fact that
the decision to elevate both Sriprakash Jaiswal and Khurshid to Cabinet rank was
done to offset criticism that there was no Cabinet Minister from the
politically crucial State. Beni Prasad Verma’s inclusion is aimed at wooing
Kurmis, who account for 6% of UP’s population. Along-with Jaiswal he would
reach out to the broader non-Yadav OBC segment.
In the season of election, Kerala, the other poll-bound State
also got a leg-up with the induction of KC Venugopal and E Ahmed as MoS. Both were accommodated to send a message that
a Christian and a Nair are acknowledged by New Delhi. No matter that States going to the
polls will not base their vote according to whether 'their person' has been
made a Cabinet minister or not.
As for key ally, Sharad Pawar’s NCP, despite Praful Patel’s
elevation to Cabinet Minister of Heavy Industries he has lost the powerful
Civil Aviation portfolio, the Party seems to have been cut down to size by the
Congress. While Pawar has retained agriculture, he has lost the crucial Civil Supplies
Ministry. Plus, his foe Vilasrao Deshmukh is now in his trajectory with rural
development and will be used to checkmate Pawar in Maharashtra’s
rural constituencies where rural distress caused by agrarian crisis is a major
issue.
True, Manmohan Singh has promised a complete overhaul of his
ministerial colleagues post Parliament’s Budget session. While holding a
warning to poor performing Ministers, he has dangled a carrot to those hoping
to find a berth specially the Congress baba
log. Given that he intends lowering the minimum age of his brood in keeping
with the practice the world over.
The tragedy of the entire exercise is that the Government
continues to show its lack of purpose to improve its credibility. Not enough
political measures have been either undertaken or hold out promise to tackle
corruption and incompetence within the Government. Rendering the reshuffle
aimless.
Clearly, the Grand Dame doesn't seem to have any fresh ideas
for a holistic approach to solve the scores of problems in Government,
Parliament and in the Supreme Court. Revealing
that Manmohan Singh-Sonia are not on a confident footing to face the Budget
session and coming Assembly elections in several key States.
It remains to be seen whether politically and governance-wise
this ministerial re-jig will be able to perform perceptively different than the
earlier one. Raising a moot point: Is Sonia beginning to lose her grip over the
political situation?
True, a purposeful Cabinet reshuffle may not have changed
things overnight but it could have kick-started the change that the aam aadmi is waiting for. It could have
been a contributing factor in the grand strategy to tackle immediate issues
including skyrocketing prices, burgeoning inflation, corruption, Telangana
unrest and the issue of delivery of the Government's ambitious programmes like
the NREGS.
In sum, notwithstanding the fact that the Government is far
from unstable and elections are a good three years away, the harsh truth is
that the Government is not only rudderless but worse even clueless that it is
rudderless. The Congress triumvirate of Manmohan-Sonia-Rahul has lost an
opportunity of cleaning its stables. They could have afforded to show a more
combative mood. Economist Manmohan Singh needs to remember that a ministerial
formation is also about the brand showing the product. What does he have to offer?
---- INFA
(Copyright,
India News and Feature Alliance)
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