The UPA’s coming ministerial reshuffle alone can prove that it is still alive and kicking. The signal will come from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. One hopes it will not be just an expansion to fill vacancies and follow the rule of one-person-one-post. The vacancies have been created by the exit of some ministers tainted with corruption and the Trinamul ministers leaving in a huff. It will be judicious to create new portfolios and appoint the right person to the right slot, adhering to the norms of democratic government. So far a darbari system has prevailed with Congress MPs playing politics- a legacy from the days of Indira Gandhi. Ministers from other parties in the alliance act independently and defy the collective will of the council of ministers. The Prime Minister has to go for a real perestroika. Present incumbents can continue in their posts only if they have a blameless track record. Accountability to the people who elect them is an imperative. And it is not only a five year test.
Young lions should not get frustrated, stuck in their berths. The Congress must abandon its policy of ignoring to attach true value to merit. In UPA I, Arjun Singh proved it. In UPA II, Rajya Sabha practitioners survive by creating a hiatus between the present Congress government and the normative Congress government. Rahul Gandhi has to move to the centre but at present he is a victim of policy paralysis. The reason why the UPA government is faltering is that every minister has to owe allegiance to the brand of governance that Sonia Gandhi stands for.