Railways: Lining pockets, careers

No wonder then that Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee would like to get her party8217;s hands on Railways.

And not a surprise either that Nitish Kumar of the Samata Party will not let go without a fight. The scopeof the ministry is immense in a backward state like Bihar and in West Bengal with its extremely poor areas, and control over it can make a vast difference to the existing political situation.

West Bengal does not have to look far for an example. The political career of state Congress leader Ghani Khan Chaudhary is said to be surviving only because he once had the fortune of heading the Railway Ministry. 8220;Whatever anybody might think of him as a leader and a politician, he is considered God in Malda his constituency and it is only because of some trains he started there when he was the railway minister,8221; an official who worked under Chaudhary says.

8220;The resources and manpower at the disposal of the Railway Minister,8221; says a senior member of the Railway Board, 8220;can perhaps be compared only to that of the Finance Minister and the Defence Minister. But the Railway Minister scores in terms of unparalleled clout 8212; derived from mass public contact. All measures affect people directly. With 11 millionpassengers using railway services daily, it makes the job of the Railway Minister not only high-profile but also dynamic and vibrant. Once a railway minister, and his political future is as good as assured.8221;

It is not just by starting new trains that a railway minister can assure some goodwill and a lot of votes, the Railways also employs thousands of casual labourers. And railway ministers like Ram Vilas Paswan and C.K. Jaffer Sharief were known to distribute jobs aplenty, especially to people from their own state, constituency and even family. Both earned the tag of 8220;saviour8221; and 8220;messiah8221; in a large part thanks to the Indian Railways.

Sharief explains this in his own words. 8220;You don8217;t earn goodwill just by being the Railway Minister,8221; he told The Indian Express. 8220;You also have to work. I established a wheel and axle factory near Bangalore and gave employment to hundreds of people.8221; He sees nothing wrong in the fact that his policies may have favoured his own constituency, Bangalore, andadmits that a railway minister 8220;can do a lot8221;.

Among the things Sharief himself 8220;accomplished8221; was building an unusually long Road Over Bridge on a busy railway crossing in Bangalore, believed to have been constructed just to facilitate his movement to his farmhouse on the city8217;s outskirts. He was also embroiled in a controversy over the award of an import contract to his son-in-law8217;s company, ABV Loco.

In fact, this is another way a railway minister can earn 8220;goodwill8221; and a lot else. Points out a Railway Board official: 8220;In Railways, there are tenders for everything. Contracts are awarded right from scrap disposal to laying of railway lines. With the Indian Railways being the largest public undertaking under one organisation, there are thousands of contracts to be given. And the minister can enjoy direct control over them.8221;

Besides 8220;pleasing8221; big companies and contractors thus, he can take care of the grass-roots through the kiosks and stalls at railway stations, also his to distribute.Ministers have been directly allotting these shops at railway stations all over the country by mere letters. 8220;This way they keep their constituency, people, relatives and cronies happy,8221; the official adds. Paswan, especially, had a knack for keeping the people close to him well-fed and happy.

There were so many people who used to come and eat on his account,8221; discloses an official. 8220;He ran up a record food bill of Rs 28-30 lakh in less than one year.8221; He is also known to have distributed the largest number of free rail travel passes 8212; 50,000 8212; and most to people from his Hajipur constituency.

Even former Congress leader Suresh Kalmadi managed to make a name for himself as railway minister in the space of just nine months. Not only did he distribute a large number of free passes but he also announced complimentary passes for ex-MPs with their companions as well as privileges for sportsmen and ex-servicemen. The orders came just before the Congress government led by P.V. Narasimha Rao completed itstenure, and just in time for the next elections.

Taking a ride on the gravy train

C.K. Jaffer Sharief: Got an unusually long Road Over Bridge constructed over a railway crossing in Bangalore, reportedly to clear way to his farmhouse. Also awarded an import contract to his son-in-law, generating controversy.

Ram Vilas Paswan: Ran up a record food bill as people came and ate on his account. Also distributed the most number of free travel passes, 50,000, largely to people from his own constituency, Hajipur.

Ghani Khan Chaudhary: Started some trains to his constituency, Malda, long ago when he headed the ministry. Still winning on that account.