Cabinet reshuffle: UPA elephant gives birth to a mouse

The UPA elephant went into labour on Sunday, accompanied by much thunderous trumpeting and foot-stomping. Astrologers who had peered at planetary alignments and deconstructed horoscopes  promised that the born-again UPA Cabinet would bring about a major “image makeover” of the government - one that would set the tone for the remainder of its term. The new-born, we were promised, would bear the genetic code of Rahul Gandhi, and brim with youthful vigour. But after all the fretful exertions of the Cabinet reshuffle of Sunday, the verdict is in: the elephant, it appears, has given birth to a mouse. This was perhaps one of the most anti-climactic Cabinet reshuffles ever, and in large part the exercise fell victim to the irrational heightening of expectations ahead of it. [caption id=“attachment_505749” align=“alignright” width=“380”]  The Cabinet reshuffle was motivated more by considerations of politics rather than governance. PTI[/caption] Predictably, media commentaries have been downbeat in their assessment. They point to the reshuffle as having failed to utilise the last chance for the UPA 2 government to turn the page on a lacklustre term in office; as not quite narrating a “ persuasive or coherent story of change”;  as being excessively reliant on “a political model centred around regional appeasement, traditional loyalties and patronage networks”; and as  reflecting old-world identity politics rather than any resolve to upgrade governance, by inducting merit and youth into Ministerial ranks. The problem, as most commentaries have noted, is that the reshuffle makes for a lot of activity, but very little by way of decisive action. For all the hype surrounding the infusion of “young blood” into Manmohan Singh’s Ministry, the average age of the Cabinet has, as Economist magazine points out, hardly come down at all: from nearly 65 years old, pre-shuffle, to just over 64 now.  And the primary preoccupation appears to have been with addressing political compulsions and accommodating regional representation, rather than on enhancing governance standards or rewarding good performance. If anything, the Congress has been borderline brazen in the manner in which it has “rewarded” Salman Khurshid by moving him from the Law Ministry to the high-profile External Affairs Ministry. Khurshid hasn’t yet been cleared of the serious allegations against him:  of forgery to cover up misappropriation of funds by a trust that his family runs. And to that extent, his elevation in the Cabinet represents a callous disregard for both public sentiments and norms that govern propriety in governance. Without prejudice to Khurshid’s credentials, his ‘promotion’ represents a reward for his loud-mouthed, cringe-worthy loyalty to the dynasty that presides over the Congress’ destiny. Congress spin doctors are already working overtime to project the elevation of the “youth brigade” as bearing the personal imprint of  Rahul Gandhi. This breathless commentary claims that the reshuffle “carries the first unmistakable stamp of Rahul Gandhi’s ascendancy” in the Congress party. The clear focus on the rise of the “younger set” in the reshuffle, it claims, is áscribed to Rahul Gandhi’s “growing involvement” in government affairs. It added, citing unnamed sources, that this was the first time that Rahul Gandhi had “cast aside his aloofness to discuss the ministerial team with the Prime Minister.” But if the effort were genuinely to project a generational shift in the administrative set-up, it’s difficult to explain why none of the youth brigade was given a Cabinet berth, but were instead asked to settle for Minister of State status with independent  charge of their Ministries. One plausible explanation is that far from being propelled by Rahul Gandhi, the younger set is actually being held back from attaining their potential for fear that they might end up outshining Rahul Gandhi. As Pratap Bhanu Mehta points out, the pace of the promotions (of the younger lot) is still glacial. “It is hard to shake off the feeling that young leaders cannot be given responsibility in a way that there is a risk of them overshadowing Rahul Gandhi. The culture of the Congresss party is such that until the moment Rahul (Gandhi) decides to genuinely lead, it will be hard for anyone else to stake out an independent track record of achievement.” Net-net, where does the reshuffle leave the UPA? In terms of optics, the reshuffle represents a lot of frenetic activity. But in the final analysis, the UPA government is living on borrowed time, with not much to show by way of performance in its second successive term. It faces the very real prospect of an early election, one whose campaign themes will be focussed on the monumental corruption scandals under its watch. The only saving grace for the UPA is that the principal Opposition, the BJP, is in a state of disarray, and grappling with its own baggage of corruption and dubious business practices of its leaders. The Manmohan Singh government’s best bet would be for it to try and change the narrative for the remainder of its term in office by setting a bold reformist economic agenda. But it’s hard to see Sunday’s reshuffle as having contributed towards such an objective.