SINGH's SILLY CAPERS

Something very farcical recently happened in India, which made Prime Minister Manmohan Singh attempt some silly capers. He did it to bail out his pal, Mr. Montek Singh Ahluwalia, and maybe he was happy as P.M. he had stood by his handpicked man. But the upshot of it was it had followed uncalled for pressure by Communist MPs supporting the Government from outside. The question then is how far is Singh going to bear with them?

Septuagenarian Communist MP who long served West Bengal as Chief Minister, Mr. Jyoti Basu, protested Ahluwalia chairing the Planning Commission as Deputy Chairman at the behest of the Prime Minister, who on assuming office had summoned him to take up the post.

Ahluwalia was Manmohan Singh’s sure bet to ensure his influence as the Prime Minister in the muddle of post-election politics in the country. But the Communists derided Ahluwalia, as he was a former finance secretary at the World Bank.

Apart from the Ahluwalia issue, the Communist MPs were also protesting the Planning Commission’s appointment of World Bank and IMF representatives on various committees to consult on economic progress. However, Basu zeroed in on Ahluwalia himself.

Singh did the ultimate to let his pal stay. He ordered disbanding all consultative committees of the Planning Commission, including Members of Parliament, among them Communist MPs as well.

Singh may say he had his way as P.M.
Did he?