Opinion Pawar’s much undone about nothing
If image makeover was indeed the theme,then why weren't all the tainted ministers dropped,starting perhaps with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar?
If image makeover was indeed the theme,then why weren’t all the tainted ministers dropped,starting perhaps with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar?
What began on a dramatic note has ended in a tame affair for the Nationalist Congress Party,exposing the half-heartedness on the part of its leadership in its purported goal of refurbishing the party image ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
On the contrary,it lay bare the cracks within the organisation. If image makeover was indeed the theme,then why werent all the tainted ministers dropped,starting perhaps with Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar? And if NCP chief Sharad Pawar was keen that senior ministers focus on Lok Sabha seats,then why were those shortlisted for the electoral contest retained in the Cabinet? Such ambiguity has led to talk of a hidden agenda behind Pawar demanding the resignation of all NCP ministers.
None of the top Cabinet ministers was dropped nor their portfolios changed. Neither did any of the important portfolios of Home,Finance,Power,PWD,Food & Civil Supplies,Rural Development,Water Resources witness any change.
All that the NCP did was induct three new Cabinet-rank ministers Madhukar Pichad,Dilip Sopal (Independent) and Shashikant Shinde,and get in Suresh Dhas,Uday Samant and Sanjay Savkhare in the MoS category.
While three senior controversial Cabinet ministers Gulabrao Deokar,Baban Panchpute and Bhaskar Jadhav were dropped,this appeared to have been a course correction directed at their respective Assembly constituencies. On the other hand,Minister for Higher Medical Education Vijaykumar Gavit against whom corruption cases are pending continues.
Even if the NCP intended to use the resignations as a pressure tactic to get the Congress to undertake a similar exercise,that too boomeranged. Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan remained unperturbed,making it clear that the Congress will choose its own time for a reshuffle. At the end of the swearing-in ceremony at Raj Bhavan in Mumbai Tuesday,even senior ministers seemed puzzled. Why did Pawarsaheb seek our resignation for such a minor reshuffle? asked one.
At the end of the day,the entire exercise may have been an ad hoc one to to consolidate the partys base in the Konkan,North Maharashtra and Marathwada regions.
Shubhangi is a senior editor based in Mumbai
shubhangi.khapre@expressindia.com
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