With nine members in the Union council of ministers, Maharashtra has again asserted its political might in the Manmohan Singh government.
With nine members in the Union council of ministers, Maharashtra has again asserted its political might in the Manmohan Singh government.
While Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel of the NCP have been retained, the surprise inductions were former chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh (Marathwada) and Pratik Patil (Sangli) of the Congress. This signals the party’s emphasis on loyalists and aggressive leadership.
Mumbai’s stellar performance in the elections has reaped rich dividends for senior MP Gurudas Kamat, who has been rewarded with a cabinet berth. Kamat had earlier tried hard to get a foothold in the ministry.
Though in 2004, the number of ministers representing the state was 10, the loss of one berth is the result of the adjustment made by the NCP, which preferred to have a junior minister from Meghalaya instead of Maharashtra.
With assembly elections due in September-October, ministers have been selected keeping in mind regional and caste compositions. While Deshmukh represents Marathwada, Mukul Wasnik represents Vidarbha, Sushilkumar Shinde, Patil, and Prithviraj Chavan, Western Maharashtra, and Kamat and Murli Deora, Mumbai.
The party thought it wiser to rehabilitate Deshmukh, who lost his chief ministership after 26/11, to keep Pawar in check.
Deshmukh, who is not a member of either House of Parliament, got an edge over former Union home minister Shivraj Patil, who also hails from Marathwada, as he has wider acceptance across the state.
Ensuring dalit representation are Wasnik and Shinde. Chavan, who shares a good rapport with Singh and Sonia Gandhi, has been retained, while the decision not to disturb the petroleum ministry saw Mumbai’s Deora make it to the cabinet.
The induction of Patil, grandson of the late Vasantrao Patil, is a signal to dissidents within the state, including senior revenue minister Patangrao Kadam, that the leadership wants to keep the former CM’s legacy alive in Western Maharashtra. Gandhi personally called Patil to break the news.
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