Rahul non-committal
The informal tea party at Sonia Gandhi’s residence post her election as the Congress Parliamentary Party chief had MPs making a beeline towards Rahul Gandhi to figure out his mood. Though he appeared in less of a dark mood over the recent Lok Sabha poll debacle, he remained noncommittal about his future role. On being asked if he would reconsider continuing as the Congress president, he’s said to have quipped, “Let’s wait and see what happens.”
Till Friday, Rahul had stuck to his guns on wanting to resign; however, at the CPP meeting he was all fire and brimstone against the ruling dispensation, giving his party hope. The fact that he has begun meeting people, and tweeting, is also seen as a pointer to his mellowing down.
Leader of the Opposition
Well, the Congress, for the second time running, has failed to get the number of seats required to claim the LOP post in the Lok Sabha. Efforts are on to garner the support of small groups like the RSP and Kerala Congress (Mani) and the independent who won from Amravati in Maharashtra, Navnit Ravi Rana, so as to be able to claim the post.
The final decision rests on the Speaker. Whatever is the decision, Rahul Gandhi is certainly not up for it. The race is on between Shashi Tharoor and Manish Tewari, both articulate former ministers. Unless the seniormost Congress MP from Kerala pips them to the post. Without the formal recognition, there’s no trappings to the post.
Sitharaman’s elevation
Curiously, even as the media speculated about Amit Shah taking on the finance portfolio, investors and the whole financial edifice — both private and public — had no doubt that it won’t be him. The fact that the markets were not quite bullish, in fact, had tanked a bit after Sitharaman was named FM, was more in anticipation of the GDP downslide and worrying job data which were (finally) scheduled to be released, confirming fears and dampening spirits. Her familiarity with the domain and ability to hold negotiations/dialogue with international counterparts or foreign investors was seen as an advantage. But what may have finally clinched the issue in her favour was the recommendation of her mentor, Arun Jaitley. At least, that’s the buzz in Lutyens’ Delhi.
Surprise entry
S Jaishankar’s induction into the Union Cabinet as Minister of External Affairs was certainly not expected. He becomes the second lateral entry into the powerful CCS after Manmohan Singh, who had joined the Narasimha Rao government as FM. With his induction, the representation of JNU in the government and the CCS goes up to two. The other one being Nirmala Sitharaman.
Surprise deletion
There is no denying that Sushma Swaraj had created a niche for herself with her public interface as Minister of External Affairs. Like Arun Jaitley, Swaraj too had a kidney transplant and has health issues which require avoiding too much interaction or exposure to areas that are not sanitised. The reason why she opted out of poll contest. But this does not mean an exit from politics or political life. The buzz is, she could either be sent to a Raj Bhawan or brought into the Rajya Sabha.