Pranab Mukherjee: What do you do when 'Mr Fix-it' becomes the problem?

Despite Sonia Gandhi’s intervention and her separate meetings Monday evening with the two warring stalwarts of the UPA government—Pranab Mukherjee and P Chidambram—there’s little indication of the crisis engulfing the governing alliance blowing up in a hurry. The UPA government has been busy firefighting — with not much apparent success—this past one week, ever since an RTI application brought to the fore a March 2011 finance ministry note which blames the former finance minister, Chidambram, of complicity in the 2G scam. Of course with the controversial note now in public domain and the Supreme Court also likely to take a view on the same soon, there’s not much the UPA crisis managers can do in terms of damage control after the proverbial horses have bolted the stable. But regardless of the view the Court may finally take and the embarrassment the government has already faced on the issue because of the sustained media interest and Opposition onslaught, there’s another unexpected factor which is causing a lot of nervousness and worry amongst senior Congress leaders. This factor is none other than the UPA’s all season troubleshooter and arguably the governing alliance’s most astute, seasoned and politically savvy leader, Pranab Mukherjee. The Finance Minister heads the most number of GOMs, and is expected to rescue the UPA every time it gets into trouble and is for all practical purposes the government’s face in all matters political ( in fact he is sometimes referred to as PM-Politics by those who also refer to Manmohan Singh as PM-Economics and Foreign Affairs).  The problem this time around is that the man who is supposed to be solving these problems is himself at the centre of it. Just see how Pranab Mukherjee has handled the crisis thus far. [caption id=“attachment_93286” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“Pranab Mukherjee has not even once suggested that the note might have just slipped through without his knowledge.”] [/caption] He has constantly referred to Chidmbram as a valued colleague and a pillar of strength to the government. He has stoutly denied that there is any infighting in the government. Nobody can find fault with what Pranab da has said. Nothing else can also be expected from someone as seasoned and as consummate a practitioner of political statecraft as the old fox from Bengal who has seen it all in a career spanning several decades. But it’s interesting to also follow what Pranab Mukherjee has not said so far. Not even once has he given any hint of giving a clean chit to Chidambram. Interesting if one considers the fact that both the Prime Minister and the party (ie Sonia Gandhi) have expressed full confidence in the home minister which is virtually giving him a clean chit under the circumstances. Pranab Mukherjee is doing none of that. In fact without saying that in as many words he is actually defending the controversial finance ministry note by saying that he will get it examined legally and that the note was merely a statement of fact recording the sequence of events as asked for by the Prime Minister’s Office. In fact the finance minister has gone even further and there have been suggestions from sources close to him—and the same have been liberally quoted in the press these last few days — that the note has been made public not by the Finance Ministry but by the PMO. But nobody seems to be asking the obvious question. How come a note which points a direct finger at Chidambram passes muster from the desk of the finance minister himself. Pranab Mukherjee has not even once suggested that the note might have just slipped through without his knowledge. There appears to be no regret or even a second thought on the part of the finance minister on the content and timing of the note. Clearly there is much more to what meets the eye in this case. And only Pranab Mukherjee knows the entire story and despite all his public posturing and not wanting to escalate matters, the finance minister has also so far given no indication of letting Chidambram off the hook. So no backtracking on the controversial note is Pranab da’s line so far. Pranab Mukherjee seems to have the silent backing of quite a few Congress leaders in this campaign which targets Chidambaram but may end up embarrassing both the prime minister and the Congress president. It’s a delicate situation with no easy way out. Only a man like Pranab — with all his experience — could have helped the UPA out of this mess. The problem this time is that he is the one who seems to have craftily created this problem. Till he is won over, a way out of this impasse seems difficult. The big question is whether he is ready to be won over? Or is the wily finance minister planning something even bigger!