CHENNAI: BJP State president Pon Radhakrishnan looks all set to be the only representative from Tamil Nadu on Narendra Modi’s new Union Cabinet. PMK’s Anbumani Ramadoss, who was the only other NDA candidate to win his Lok Sabha bid in the State, is unlikely to get a Cabinet berth because of a CBI case against him. Modi is also unlikely to spare Rajya Sabha seats for MDMK chief Vaiko or the DMDK, according to sources in the BJP.
Radhakrishnan is being seen in party circles as a contender for three portfolios – Rural Development, Shipping or Power.
With Shipping and Power perceived as plum postings, Radhakrishnan is more likely to get Rural Development, according to a well-placed source in the BJP.
Anbumani Ramadoss, a doctor by qualification, had set his sights on the high-profile Health Ministry, which he had occupied as part of the UPA-I government. He is, however, unlikely to get this, or for that matter any posting.
“Our leadership is very clear that Anbumani will not be given a seat because there is a CBI case against him. The people of this country have voted for Modi. If we give him a posting even while knowing about this CBI case, we would lose the trust of the people who have given Modiji such a huge mandate,” said a BJP leader on condition of anonymity.
The CBI case against Anbumani pertains to an accusation that he abused his position as Union health minister in 2008 to allow an Indore-based medical college to proceed with the formalities of admission though the Medical Council of India. Previously, a committee appointed by the Supreme Court had recommended that the college did not have adequate faculty and clinical infrastructure to proceed with admission formalities, despite which Anbumani reportedly allowed it.
The CBI had chargesheeted Anbumani in 2012 on charges of abusing his office for ‘pecuniary advantages’.
Despite its majority in the Lok Sabha, the BJP still faces a challenge of numbers in the Rajya Sabha.
For this reason, it is unlikely to bestow precious Rajya Sabha seats on the MDMK or the DMDK, both of whom failed to win a single seat despite contesting from seven and 14 constituencies, respectively.
“I don’t think they were expecting anything more than membership to some board or the other. What they should be given will be discussed only after the new government takes oath. But Rajya Sabha is out of the question,” said the BJP source. The other question that is likely to be taken up by the BJP in Chennai on Tuesday is the appointment of a new State president, as Radhakrishnan would have to vacate the post in view of his Cabinet appointment.
This, and the presence of Tamil Nadu BJP leaders in powerful committees in Delhi, is expected to be formalised within a week, the source said.