The Congress-NCP coalition appears to have turned a blind eye to the collective responsibility of running the government.
The Congress-NCP coalition appears to have turned a blind eye to the collective responsibility of running the government. Every time a crisis confronts them, cabinet ministers engage in finding faults in each other pushing aside the real issue.
Home minister RR Patil and forest minister Patangrao Kadam took the centre stage this weekend and engaged in a mindless verbal dual.
The Congress is amused by Kadam asking Patil to engage in some introspection. Kadam also questioned Patil’s calibre as home minister. Not known to take criticism lightly, Patil retaliated: “If Kadam seeks solace in such exercise, what should I say? I don’t think it is worth taking note.”
Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan’s code of conduct for the council of ministers has remained on paper. He reckons that senior ministers in Congress and NCP engage in political battles to address their constituents. Both Kadam and Patil hail from Sangli constituency.
A senior Congress general secretary admits, “We have a coordination committee comprising top leaders from both the parties to address differences. But if ministers refuse to show restraint in public, nothing can be done. After a point, it looks like a television serial.”
Senior BJP leader Madhav Bhandari says, “What can one comment when senior ministers are at war? It shows there is no sense of collective responsibility in the government. It displays their insecurity. They know this is their last chance to grab power.”
An NCP political manager said: “It is a sad commentary as cabinet ministers, instead of taking initiative to tackle their district issues, are fighting.”
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