Jairam Ramesh may follow suit as he rushes to clear files pending in Ministry
In the first indication of the Congress moving towards effecting a major organisational rehaul following its drubbing in the recent Assembly polls and in view of the lok Sabha elections ahead, Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan resigned from the Union Council of Ministers on Saturday to “work for the party”. Some more Ministers are also likely to follow suit in days to come in order to be drafted into party work.
A Rashtrapati Bhavan communiqué said Oil Minister M Veerappa Moily will hold the additional charge of the Environment Ministry. Natarajan, a Rajya Sabha member, hails from Tamil Nadu and was brought into the Ministry two years ago when the Manmohan Singh Government had last undertaken a Cabinet reshuffle. Of late, she has been active as one of the Congress’ faces on TV news channels.
However, speculation is rife whether her exit is related to party work or due to reported complaints from India Inc that her Ministry was holding up environmental clearances to projects. The view gained momentum as Rahul Gandhi shared industry’s concerns later in the day at a FICCI meet where he said, “In India, there are a lot of arbitrary powers. The Environment Minister or the Chief Minister can take any decision he wants.”
The buzz about Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh to be the next Minister to put in his papers also did the rounds on Saturday with sources pointing to his rush for clearing the files of his Ministry. Ramesh is likely to be entrusted with the responsibility of heading the party’s election war room.
Congress leaders indicate that the restructuring of the party’s organisation, at the behest of vice-president Rahul Gandhi, could happen before the January 17 AICC meeting in which the name of the party’s prime ministerial candidate could be announced. Buoyed by the groundswell of support for its PM candidate Narendra Modi, the BJP had been daring the Congress to name its man for the top job. Despite the Congress leaving no chance to attack Modi and trash BJP’s Modi-wave assertions, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram have gone public in admitting he (Modi) is indeed a challenge.
The impending organisational revamp could also see the likes of young Ministers such as Jyotiraditya Scindia (Power), Sachin Pilot (Corporate Affairs), Jitender Singh Bhanwar (MoS-Defence) and RPN Singh (MoS-Home) resigning to contribute to party’s preparations for the general elections.
Unconfirmed reports suggested that Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and Defence Minister AK Antony too had offered to resign but were asked by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to stay put.
Natarajan’s resignation follows Congress’ move to replace PCC chiefs in Delhi, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan where the party fared badly in the recent Assembly elections besides Goa.
Scindia as the Congress campaign committee chief for Madhya Pradesh was the party’s Chief Ministerial candidate. Trusted by Rahul, Scindia is likely to be engaged in a big way in the party’s preparations for the general elections, particularly in Madhya Pradesh.
Pilot’s name is being talked about as the possible Rajasthan PCC chief after its previous occupant Chandrabhan resigned in view of the party’s debacle. Pilot could be given the party’s charge to at least prevent a repeat of the Assembly elections results in the desert State.
Bhanwar, also considered close to Rahul, is a probable candidate for a general secretary’s post in the AICC. He had earlier been an AICC Secretary.
There’s also the possibility of AICC Secretary Ashok Tanwar being made the PCC chief in Haryana. The appointment of a new PCC chief to replace Phulchand Mulana is long overdue. Sources also did not rule out the possibility of some old guards at key positions in the party being shown the door.
On Thursday, the party appointed two new PCC chiefs -- Arvinder Singh lovely and Bhupesh Baghel in Delhi and Chhattisgarh respectively. A day before, the Congress replaced its Goa PCC chief Subhash A Shirodkar and appointed former MP John Fernandes as the State unit president.
There is also speculation about replacement of Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna in Uttarakhand, though the party has officially denied any such move.