HVK Archives: Flavour of the month
Flavour of the month - The Indian Express
Rajat Sharma
()
27 April 1997
Title : Flavour of the month
Author : Rajat Sharma
Publication : The Indian Express
Date : April 27, 1997
For the first time since Independence, India has a Prime Minister
who has borrowed his entire Council of Ministers from his
predecessor. The new Prime Minister, Inder Kumar Gujral, should at
least have had the prerogative of reallocating the portfolios. The
luxury of dropping a minister from the Union Cabinet, in fact, was
enjoyed by the Chief Minister of a state, and not the Prime
Minister. Laloo Prasad Yadav made no effort to hide the fact that
it was he who had insisted on Devendra Prasad Yadav being removed
from the Council of Ministers.
Again for the first time, India has a Prime Minister who has the
leader of the supporting party sitting on his head as some sort of
super prime minister. The Congress president, Sitaram Kesri, has
already made a public display of his newly-acquired status by
snubbing the Union Home Secretary at Rashtrapati Bhawan during the
swearing-in ceremony.
Gujral, however, should be happy to see the team of newly acquired
loyalists hovering around him. Union Railway Minister Ram Vilas
Paswan, who had declared in Parliament that at no cost would the
United Front change its leader, is now seen as a Gujral confidant.
Laloo Prasad Yadav, who had announced that it was either H. D.
Deve Gowda or general elections, is now happily playing king-maker.
Mulayam Singh Yadav, earlier a claimant for prime ministership who
had called Gujral a man without base, now finds in the new PM a
leader who'll lead the UF in fighting communal forces. Others like
Indrajit Gupta, the veteran communist leader who made no secret of
his differences with the previous PM, is now singing praise of the
new leader.
Only a couple of weeks ago, we were told how much Gowdaji had done
for the country. How he had fought a battle to contain the
communal forces. How much he had worked for the poor farmers of
the country. How he inspired P Chidambaram to present a dream
budget. How he did not succumb to pressures and allowed the CBI and
Directorate of Revenue Intelligence to investigate the misdeeds of
powerful people. Some even go further, going into Deve Gowda's
'alert' mind, pointing out how he could come out with the right
answers even while appearing to sleep in public!
Now suddenly, the focus has shifted to Gujralji. Within 24 hours of
his being sworn in, every possible relative of Gujral has been
interviewed by the over-enthusiastic media. The country knows about
almost everything that Gujral likes. His tasteful home in the posh
Maharani Bagh neighbourhood in New Delhi, which is his son Mahesh's
gift to him, an official bungalow on Amrita Sher-Gil Marg, his love
for morning walks, and his evenings at India International Centre.
The nation has just discovered the qualities of a man who was
treated as a political nor-entity till even a few weeks ago.
Gujral is the man whose candidature for Rajya Sabha was opposed
tooth and nail by Laloo Prasad Yadav. The new Prime Minister is
the man G. K. Moopanar contested till the end with the support of a
large number of Congress leaders. But the Prime Minister's mantle
has changed it all. The new Prime Minister has offered to be open
and transparent. His main problem, however, would be to manage
contradictions. Moopanar does not want to be anywhere near where
Harkishen Singh Surjeet rules the roost.
Laloo Yadav, meanwhile, is continuing with his efforts to cut
Mulayam Singh Yadav to size. If Surjeet did not allow Moopanar to
become Prime Minister, Laloo snatched the deputy prime ministership
from the other Yadav. Ram Vilas Paswan is aware that Laloo had
teamed up with Sharad Yadav to pull the rug from under his feet
whenever the right opportunity presents itself. Sitaram Kesri wants
all of Deve Gowda's men to be sidelined. And Deve Gowda is
determined to ensure there's no let-up in investigations into the
cases against Kesri and other Congress leaders.
Gujral has a difficult task indeed. He needs both luck and
support. But the key to his survival is that both his friends and
foes need him to avoid the next general elections.
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