Who will be the next BJP President?
With most of the short-listed candidates (as per the rumour mill) having made it to the Union Cabinet the jury is still out on this one. Earlier it was speculated that either Manohar Lal Khatt ar, Bhupender Yadav, Shivraj Singh Chouhan or even Nitin Gadkari or Amit Shah would get the job. But now with all them having been given plum Cabinet portfolios, this seems unlikely. There is also speculation that J.P. Nadda could be given an extension. Alternatively, a symbolic gesture could be made to appoint a candidate from the South or else a woman candidate to appeal to the appropriate region or gender politics. The name of Saroj Pandey, a party national vice president and an ex MP from Chhattisgarh, is doing the rounds. But, in the end, given that continuity is the dominant trend of the Modi 3.0, it does seem possible that the current party president, Nadda will continue. In which case, will his bête noire Anurag Thakur, be accommodated within the party organisation? For there is a very good reason that someone with Anurag’s potential has been kept out of the Cabinet, and the speculation is that it could be that there is a strong organisational role planned for him.
Why was Praful Patel kept out of the cabinet?
The Modi government’s first (public) coalition test was when NCP leader and Rajay Sabha MP was denied a Cabinet berth. Ajit Pawar’s faction of the NCP won two seats and had indicated that Praful was its nominee for a ministerial berth. Although Praful’s seniority demanded a Cabinet accommodation, the number of MPs within the NCP’s kitty did not warrant it. RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary also got two MPs and was given a MoS berth (Independent charge). But of course in the end it all boils down to the Prime Minister’s discretion. Some claim that by denying the NCP a Cabinet portfolio, Modi could be making a conciliatory gesture towards Sharad Pawar, and perhaps this is the very reason why Narayan Rane too had been denied a ministerial portfolio—to placate Uddhav Thackeray. After all, elections in Maharashtra are not too far off and the BJP is reportedly not very happy with either of its current allies. It is on the hunt for new ones.
Pros & Cons of Being LoP
At the time of writing the Congress had not indicated whether Rahul Gandhi would hold the Leader of Opposition’s post or not. The fact that he took so long to come up with an answer is indicative enough. His heart is more on the politics of the street rather than parliamentary politics and for that he cannot be blamed. During Modi 2.0 the Parliament was hardly a centre for debate and legislation, with most bills being bulldozed through ordinances and passed amidst din and Opposition walk outs. But now with the Congress having doubled its numbers and the BJP having lost majority, there is a huge scope for the Opposition to make its presence felt in a much more constructive manner. As the Leader of Opposition Rahul would be leading the Opposition (and not just the Congress) attack. Moreover, having retained Rae Bareli over Wayanad, the Congress leader has also indicated that he is not averse to taking his politics to its logical conclusion—after all, the road to New Delhi (read PM’s house) is via Uttar Pradesh. The LoP post comes with its administrative duties, but this would be a good chance for Rahul to learn the governance ropes, a chance that he missed when he refused to be a part of Dr Manmohan Singh’s Cabinet in the UPA. This is also what the party wants him to do. Will he listen to his party colleagues as he did when he agreed to contest from Rae Bareli? Or will he go with his instincts and stick to the streets as his theatre of politics. He can also do both.