Patil does explaining to Sonia, quite a bit

The meeting also sparked speculation that the Home Minister may be shifted to another ministry whenever the Cabinet is reshuffled.

Patil may not admit it but it is learnt that both Gandhi and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh feel his performance has left much to be desired.

Even the Left is unhappy with Patil for not being able to deliver on Manipur and on the Kashmir front where talks with separatist groups are still frozen.

That apart, the release of Census figures on growth rates of various communities has not been welcomed by the Congress, especially with Maharashtra going to polls next month. Sources said the party leadership has been informed that the Census data issue had the potential to fuel the BJP8217;s campaign. There is a feeling that the report8217;s release, particularly the growth rate data, should have been handled more shrewdly.

In fact, after the meeting, Patil met Census Commissioner J K Banthia and sought details of the exercise and methodology.

The party has also done its bit to undo the Census damage. First, it clarified that the Muslim growth rate figures included Jammu and Kashmir unlike the last report. Second, it emphasised that the Muslim growth rate, though higher than that of Hindus, is coming down.

As for Manipur, the failure of Patil8217;s trip to the state and tense meeting with agitators loaded the dice against him. He is due to visit Jammu and Kashmir from September 24 to 27 though the Hurriyat has indicated that it would rather meet the Prime Minister.