The BJP’s allies — the Shiv Sena, the Akali Dal and the Lok Janshakti Party — are unlikely to bag any of the ministerial berths that will be key to the Narendra Modi government’s economic revival agenda. The ruling party is learnt to be keen on appointing BJP ministers to these “game-changing” ministries.
Besides Finance, the portfolios under this discussion include a restructured Industry Ministry and the infrastructure ministries. Mr. Modi’s government will accord these ministries as much importance as the four housed in North Block and South Block. So far only four ministries — Finance, Home, External Affairs and Defence — were considered key and therefore usually retained by the lead parties in ruling coalitions. A recent exception was George Fernandes, who belonged to the then Samata Party, holding Defence portfolio in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.
Now senior BJP leaders Arun Shourie and Arun Jaitley are strong contenders for the key economic ministries. Another former Minister, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, is a strong contender for an infrastructure ministry, informed sources told The Hindu . The sources said a proposal to hive off various departments in the existing ministries and merge them into a comprehensive Industry Ministry that had been lying dormant in the Planning Commission was discussed by the “highest level decision-makers” in the BJP. The idea is to have an overarching ministry by merging the existing ministries of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises and the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion.
Such a ministry will play a major role in revival of the jobs-creating manufacturing sector that for the first time in decades shrank (- 0.1 per cent) in 2013-14. Factory output has contracted in five of the last six months.
Senior BJP leaders who are also likely to be key ministers in Mr. Modi’s Cabinet have been meeting bureaucrats for ideas on the economic revival agenda. The first meeting was held in April itself after the conclusion of the first and second phases of polling when some opinion polls showed the BJP ahead.
The infrastructure ministries could include an Energy Ministry — comprising the existing Power and Non-Renewable Resources ministries— and a Transport Ministry by merging the the Railway and Roads and Highways ministries.
Though LJP leader Ram Vilas Paswan is said to be keen on Railways, his party is unlikely to get the Ministry, the sources said.
Correction
>>The opening paragraph of “BJP allies unlikely to bag game-changing berths” (May 22, 2014) inadvertently left out the Telugu Desam Party while listing the allies who are unlikely to bag any of the ministerial berths that will be key to the Narendra Modi government’s economic revival agenda.
