Vilasrao Desmukh hamstrung as key mediator

Union minister for science and technology Vilasrao Desmukh is a veteran of many political battles with Anna Hazare in his previous avatar as chief minister of Maharashtra.

However, the Maratha strongman now finds himself hamstrung in his efforts to break the logjam as he shuttles between the Ramlila Maidan and the corridors of power on the Raisina Hills in his role as a go-between in this high voltage confrontation.

“The situation in Maharashtra used to be different. As a chief minister, he had all the authority to take a decision on the spot. Here is just a mediator, and has to keep going back and forth,” observed an aide who has been associated with the Maharashtra affairs.

Besides, Deshmukh has been brought quite late on the scene. By the time he had been asked to intervene, the matters had already gone far too ahead, and at one point Team Anna was even questioning the very utility of his mediation.

But Deshmukh’s persuasive skills have worked to the extent that there is a roadmap for finding a solution, even if the resolution of the dispute still seems quite a distance away.