Firstpost
  • Home
  • Video Shows
    Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
  • World
    US News
  • Explainers
  • News
    India Opinion Cricket Tech Entertainment Sports Health Photostories
  • Asia Cup 2025
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
Trending:
  • Charlie Kirk shot dead
  • Nepal protests
  • Russia-Poland tension
  • Israeli strikes in Qatar
  • Larry Ellison
  • Apple event
  • Sunjay Kapur inheritance row
fp-logo
Who caused Raghuram Rajan's exit? Swamy, Gurumurthy or Narendra Modi?
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
  • Home
  • Politics
  • Who caused Raghuram Rajan's exit? Swamy, Gurumurthy or Narendra Modi?

Who caused Raghuram Rajan's exit? Swamy, Gurumurthy or Narendra Modi?

Ajay Singh • June 21, 2016, 12:34:44 IST
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

PM made up his mind much before Jaitley, Swamy and Gurumurthy converged but he left everyone guessing about the real reason behind Rajan’s exit.

Advertisement
Subscribe Join Us
Add as a preferred source on Google
Prefer
Firstpost
On
Google
Who caused Raghuram Rajan's exit? Swamy, Gurumurthy or Narendra Modi?

Following the 1998 Lok Sabha elections, when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was busy preparing the list of his council of ministers, an unscheduled visit by RSS Sar Karyavah (general secretary) KS Sudarshan upended his meticulous planning. Sudarshan carried a specific and unambiguous message, that those who lost Lok Sabha polls must not be inducted in the council of ministers. Without making it obvious, Sudarshan’s conditionality eliminated the possibility of induction of two close associates of Vajpayee in the cabinet – Jaswant Singh and Pramod Mahajan – as both had lost their respective elections. [caption id=“attachment_2805842” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] ![File image of RBI governor Raghuram Rajan. Reuters](https://images.firstpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/rajan-serious-380.jpg) File image of RBI governor Raghuram Rajan. Reuters[/caption] Though Vajpayee initially acquiesced to Sudarshan’s demand, he ultimately succeeded in throwing off his handcuffs and inducted Singh and Mahajan in his council of ministers, with important assignments. In spite of Vajpayee’s excellent personal rapport with the then RSS chief, Rajendra Singh alias Rajju Bhaiya, his relationship with the RSS remained strained all through his tenure as prime minister. The story of Vajpayee’s run-in with a strong, powerful lobby within the Sangh Parivar – which claims to espouse “economic nationalism” and is known as the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) – bears significance in the context of Raghuram Rajan’s decision to quit as the governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) with just one difference: the story of Rajan’s exit, prima facie, is much more complex than the simple narrative of 1998. Unlike 1998 – when Sudarshan by virtue of his position in the RSS could throw his weight around – the SJM now plays a relatively marginal role, even within the Sangh Parivar’s scheme of things. S Gurumurthy, a chartered-accountant-turned-RSS ideologue, occasionally associates himself with the SJM but carries himself under the banner of “economic nationalism” by raising various political and economic issues. Of late he is increasingly aligned with the cause of reviewing the Indian constitution and rooting it in the Indian value system – a cause bound to cause serious headache for the BJP in general, and for Prime Minister Narendra Modi in particular, in view of the upcoming 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Gurumurthy has additionally taken up the cause of running down the RBI governor on the issue of his handling of the PSU (Public Sector Undertaking) banks. In his detailed article, Gurumurthy was particularly critical of Rajan’s obsession with regulating the Indian PSU banks with international Basel norms and creating a situation for divestment. In Gurumurthy’s view, Rajan’s overemphasis on the NPAs (non-performing assets) of the PSU banks is intended to pave way for foreign banks in India. Gurumurthy was never coy about his serious reservations on the appointment of Rajan as RBI governor during the UPA 2 regime. And when the reins of government changed hands, he only stepped up his attack on Rajan, often using him as a punching bag to target his bête noire in the government – Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. But, even his close associates doubt whether Gurumurthy carried enough weight to influence the prime minister’s decision. There is little doubt over the fact that Modi and Gurumurthy shared a good equation for a long time. Would that have been enough for Gurumurthy to influence the PM’s decision on Rajan? The answer to this query lies in the complex structure of the Sangh Parivar, and the relationship within its various constituents. By no stretch of imagination is Gurumurthy like Sudarshan, or Modi like Vajpayee. Far from it. Modi’s stature far outweighs his contemporaries within the parivar and is unparalleled. The fact that he is totally immersed in the Sangh Parivar’s value system effectively insulates him from the criticism of being an outsider. Since he retains his popularity, the RSS and its adjuncts would not like to be seen as obstructionists, even if Modi’s decisions are not fully palatable. In Rajan’s context, it seems to be a strange coincidence that the interests of three conflicting personalities – Jaitley, Gurumurthy and Subramanian Swamy – converged to ensure the ouster of the RBI governor. It is no secret in the government that Rajan was not at ease with the union finance minister. Though Swamy had no axe to grind against Rajan, his penchant for hogging the limelight seems to have guided his recent tirade against the RBI governor. If whispers in the corridors of power in New Delhi are to be believed, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had once casually inquired about Rajan’s willingness to take charge of the finance ministry. That might be an exaggeration but it is well-known that the prime minister called Rajan his “best economics teacher”. Thus, insiders in the government say, the prime minister was never in doubt about Rajan’s competence and intellect. Rajan couldn’t just fill the trust deficit between him and the government — on the contrary his constant public posturing on matters non-monetary only widened that deficit. And that cost Rajan his second term and the man denying it was none other than the prime minister. By all indications, the prime minister had made up his mind much before the interests of Jaitley, Swamy and Gurumurthy converged. But the astute politician that he is, Modi left everyone guessing about the real reason behind Rajan’s exit. And if it seems like the hawks in the parivar won the day, it only suits him to allow that perception to gain ground and use the credits elsewhere. Such as in pushing through the biggest FDI reforms in one stroke on Monday.

Tags
UPA Congress BJP RBI Subramanian Swamy ConnectTheDots Raghuram Rajan RBI Governor Modi government KS Sudarshan Gurumurthy PM Narendra Modi Finance Minister Arun Jaitley Rexit
End of Article
Latest News
Find us on YouTube
Subscribe
End of Article

Top Stories

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

Charlie Kirk, shot dead in Utah, once said gun deaths are 'worth it' to save Second Amendment

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

From governance to tourism, how Gen-Z protests have damaged Nepal

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Did Russia deliberately send drones into Poland’s airspace?

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages: Qatar PM after Doha strike

Top Shows

Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
Latest News About Firstpost
Most Searched Categories
  • Web Stories
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • IPL 2025
NETWORK18 SITES
  • News18
  • Money Control
  • CNBC TV18
  • Forbes India
  • Advertise with us
  • Sitemap
Firstpost Logo

is on YouTube

Subscribe Now

Copyright @ 2024. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved

About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Cookie Policy Terms Of Use
Home Video Shorts Live TV