Lost in surgery

The fracas over an amendment intended to oust AIIMS Director P. Venugopal is vintage UPA, where a trivial situation snowballs out of control and the entire government is made to look invertebrate because it cannot check a few immoderate individuals. The embarrassments are still piling up. The Supreme Court verdict made it amply clear that the AIIMS amendment was an 8220;unconstitutional8221; act of personal score-settling as the Bill was hustled through without even being referred to a standing committee. For all the recent fuss over indiscipline in Parliament, using the legislative arena for personal witch-hunts is far more demeaning to the institution8217;s dignity. And now, the fact that opposition leaders like Amar Singh can use the occasion to lecture the government on propriety is deeply damaging to the whole UPA edifice.

While the Ramadoss-Venugopal personal feud may have been at the root of the whole controversy, the fact remains that the entire coalition8217;s weight was thrown behind this petty battle, and now even the sanctimonious Left finds itself in the thick of an avoidable legislative scam. The prime minister8217;s personal probity and stature are unquestioned even by his opponents, but what does it say about his government if an ally like Anbumani Ramadoss with a handful of MPs can discredit the entire government with his transparently self-serving agendas? What chance then of disciplining Arjun Singh? Or standing up to the Left8217;s ultimatums on the nuclear deal?

There is a moment when an issue like the Venugopal controversy or the recent flutter over T.R. Baalu ceases to be about the particular infraction in question, but about the manner in which the government confronts them. This flopping down in surrender to minor stakeholders is symptomatic; it is becoming the UPA8217;s leitmotif. Witness the complicated life of the nuclear deal 8212; the art of managing a coalition must involve clever accommodation as well as the ability to stare down an intransigent ally. The prime minister has the personal credentials and good sense to do so. He must leverage them to ward off his ministers8217; petty agendas, and demonstrate through action what he stands for.