Coalitions need compromises: Deshmukh

Running a coalition Government means having to make many compromises,8221; Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said on Sunday...

Running a coalition Government means having to make many compromises,8221; Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh said on Sunday while speaking at a discussion here on how regional politics could affect the Indian economy at the India Economic Summit. He also said the rise of regional parties in states across the country was reflective of the failure of nationalist parties like the Congress and the BJP to reach out to the people and required introspection from all of them.

8220;Every state has different issues and people have different aspirations that regional parties put forth. But when they play a role in national politics, there is a problem,8221; Deshmukh said, before stressing that having pre-poll alliances on a common minimum programme with these parties was okay but coming together after elections wasn8217;t.

8220;The speed with which it post-poll coalition Government works has its limitations. Decisions are delayed in one way,8221; Deshmukh said. 8220;If coalitions are here to stay in our country, there is a need for the major parties8212;the BJP, the Congress and the Communist parties8212;to come together and evolve a common policy for sectors like industry and agriculture that need long term stability,8221; he stressed.

8220;Industrial and agricultural policies should last for 20 years or so. Investors coming into a state should feel that policies would be stable. If every successive Government changes policies materially, then investors won8217;t have any protection,8221; Deshmukh argued.

When The Indian Express Group Editor Shekhar Gupta, who was moderating the discussion that included BJP8217;s Arun Jaitley and CPI8217;s D Raja, asked Deshmukh how he dealt with the fact that while farmers were committing suicides in his state, his deputy minister R R Patil was busy banning dance bars and filing cases against wardrobe malfunction, the Maharashtra Chief Minister candidly admitted, 8220;I face this everyday. Every department8217;s minister think he is independent.8221;

8220;As head of the Government, the responsibility lies with the Chief Minister. I can8217;t take exceptions that it8217;s not my department. There are limitations on my performance too as I am running a coalition Government8212;many compromises have to be made. But that is the reality and we have to live with it,8221; Deshmukh said about his experience running the state with the Nationalist Congress Party.