Cabinet expansion in Madhya Pradesh

THE ADDITIONS TO the Madhya Pradesh Cabinet and the creation of two Deputy Chief Minister-level posts are of some significance. To the extent that the feud between the Chief Minister, Mr. Digvijay Singh, and Mr. Subhash Yadav, a leader in his own right in the Khargone-Khandua districts, seems to have been settled - for this clearly is the message behind Mr. Yadav's re-induction into the Ministry - the Cabinet expansion is an important development. The exclusion of Mr. Yadav from the Cabinet when Mr. Digvijay Singh formed his Ministry after the Congress(I)'s return to power in November 1998 did lead to some trouble at that time. After all, Mr. Subhash Yadav was a Deputy Chief Minister for five long years since November 1995. It is also a fact that he had emerged as a rallying point for the dissidents within the Congress(I) at one stage. And in the 18 months since then, Mr. Yadav did display his anger in public; by leading a mass agitation against some of the decisions by the State Government, Mr. Yadav had embarrassed his own party's State Government. And the BJP, principal opposition party in the State, had found in this public display of an intra-party struggle an occasion to corner Mr. Digvijay Singh and his Government. Mr. Yadav's induction into the Cabinet and that too as a Deputy Chief Minister once again not only conveys a reconciliation between him and Mr. Digvijay Singh but also suggests that his importance in the State Congress(I) structure remains as it was.

Indeed, Mr. Yadav could not have made it now without the strong backing of some important leaders of the Congress(I) not just in the State; it is clear that he had the support of sections in the party, particularly those close to the party president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi. It is difficult to rule out that intrigues at various levels, particularly from Delhi, must have forced Mr. Digvijay Singh to induct Mr. Yadav. The elevation of Ms. Jamuna Devi too as another Deputy Chief Minister suggests some kind of bargaining having taken place in the process. It may be true that accommodating sections representing conflicting interest groups and balancing the interests of the various regions is a necessity and particularly so in a State as huge and diverse, in terms of its people, as Madhya Pradesh. Mr. Yadav, it may be recalled, was made the Deputy Chief Minister in 1993 as part of a compromise formula in the context of a strong demand by sections in the State the Congress(I) that Madhya Pradesh must have a tribal Chief Minister. Though not a tribal himself, the idea behind Mr. Yadav being made Deputy Chief Minister at that stage was the party's desire to send the right signals to the backward communities, whose alienation from the party had caused its virtual decimation in most other northern Indian States then. But then, he became an alternative power centre within the State party.

His exclusion from the Ministry itself, when Mr. Digvijay Singh emerged as a leader in his own merit after the November 1998 polls, did seem to convey that the Chief Minister was allowed to exercise his prerogative in constituting his Cabinet. Mr. Yadav's re-induction now seems to suggest a change in approach. The tactic of pushing State-level leaders, particularly those who show some promise, into a permanent state of insecurity and making them feel dependent on the high command's mercy for their survival seems to be at work in the case of Mr. Digvijay Singh now. It is important for the Congress(I) high command to realise the dangers involved in allowing such intrigues. The party high command would do well to realise that Mr. Digvijay Singh's initiatives as Chief Minister, particularly in the field of decentralisation of power and ensuring a responsive administration, have helped the party retain its hold over Madhya Pradesh despite the strong organisational presence of the BJP. The imperative for the party leaders, hence, is to let such leaders have a free hand rather than stifle their functioning.

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