Sushilkumar shinde may be Lok Sabha speaker; more faces from state may enter council of ministers.
The suspense over the new finance minister remained after the core committee of top Congress politicians met on Sunday for the first round of consultations on the formation of the next government. The meeting skirted a specific discussion on the issue because of its sensitive nature, a top Congress source said.
Manmohan Singh’s personal choice would be Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia or former Reserve Bank of India governor C Rangarajan.
The PM enjoys a special rapport with both. At the same time, there is talk of Pranab Mukherjee retaining the portfolio in the new set-up and giving up external affairs. It is something that will require careful handling, given Mukherjee’s seniority and his importance as the party’s chief troubleshooter and crisis manager.
The swearing-in ceremony of the council of ministers is likely to be held on May 22, a day after Rajiv Gandhi’s death anniversary. This gives Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh enough time to sort out the matter.
The new council is expected to strike a balance between experienced hands and fresh faces who will give it a more youthful look. The Congress party’s handsome numbers from Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra will mean a larger share of portfolios for MPs from these states. Outgoing power minister Sushilkumar Shinde, a Dalit leader from Maharashtra, is likely to be the next Lok Sabha speaker.
The core committee firmed up other parameters for the formation of the new government.
One, it decided not to have any truck with the Samajwadi Party despite Amar Singh’s pleadings. Two, it may give Lalu Prasad a ministerial berth. This was the message in Sonia Gandhi’s phone call to the RJD chief urging him to attend the present government’s last cabinet meeting on Monday.
Three, only pre-poll allies will be given positions in the new council of ministers. One should thus expect to see Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress, Dayanidhi Maran and MK Azhagiri of the DMK, Farooq Abdullah of the National Conference, Shibu Soren of the JMM, and E Ahamed of the Indian Union Muslim League.
The composition of the NCP contingent will be decided by its chief Sharad Pawar, who is nursing his wounds after a poor show in Maharashtra. A formula is being worked out for proportional representation on the basis of the number of Lok Sabha MPs each party has.
With a windfall of 206 MPs of its own, the Congress is in a commanding position to set new equations within the UPA. The party will retain the four big portfolios of home, finance, defence, and external affairs. It will also keep a large chunk of economic and infrastructure ministries.
In view of the changed power balance, now clearly weighted in favour of the Congress, there is no guarantee that the NCP will get civil aviation again or that the DMK will get surface transport or communications, said a top leader. The distribution of portfolios will be renegotiated with the allies, he said.
Experienced hands
Kamal Nath
Kapil Sibal
P Chidambaram
AK Antony
New faces
Salman Khursheed
Ghulam Nabi Azad
Beni Prasad Verma
PL Puniya
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