Less than a week after he was dropped from the BJP’s Parliamentary Board, the most powerful decision-making body of the party, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has yet again indulged in some plainspeak, saying the Government was "not taking decisions in time" and that's a problem.
The Minister reportedly made the comments on Sunday at an event. "You can make miracles...and the potential is there...My suggestion is the future of Indian infrastructure is very bright.
We need to accept good technology, good innovation, good research and successful practices in the world and in the country. We should have alternative materials by which we can reduce costs without compromising on the quality. And time is the most important thing in the construction. Time is the biggest capital. The biggest problem is the Government is not taking decisions on time," the NDTV quoted Gadkari as saying.
Time is "more important than technology or resources", he said, addressing NATCON 2022, organized by the Association of Consulting Civil Engineers, Mumbai.
Gadkari’s comments are diametrically opposite to what the Prime Minister said recently, that his Government delivered water to 7 crore households in three years while only three crore were connected in the last 70 years.
Hours after his comments on decisions taking time, Gadkari said in Nagpur that the BJP's rise to power could be credited to Vajpayee, LK Advani and Deendayal Upadhyaya.Gadkari referred to Vajpayee's speech at the BJP's 1980 conclave in Mumbai. "Atal ji had said - andhera chhatega, sooraj niklega, kamal khilega (The darkness will disappear, the Sun will come out and the lotus (BJP's poll symbol) will bloom) one day," Gadkari said.
"I was there. Everybody who heard that speech believed that such a day will come. Atal ji, Advani ji, Deendayal Upadhyaya and many workers did such work that today we are in power under PM Modi's leadership in the country and in many states," he said.
The first pointer to that something is amiss at the top level was reflected in Gadkari’s cryptic comment weeks ago at Nagpur when he said “ sometimes I think like quitting politics” and that politics is now only for “satta” (power). These comments of Gadkari had then created ripples in the political circles giving rise to speculation about (his) equation with the top BJP leadership.
His missing space in the parliamentary board later seemingly confirmed ‘suspicions’ in the political circles. Gadkari has also ceased to be a CEC member after his omission from the board.
The diminishing stature of the powerful minister from Maharashtra who once headed the BJP is being seen as a mark of distrust between the Modi-government and him.
Hailing from Nagpur, Gadkari is otherwise considered close to the RSS, the mother organization of the BJP. The Minister has, however, been since 2014 keeping a low profile in party, focusing on his ministerial work.