Coalition blues muddy UPA waters

Pranab Mukherjee’s convincing victory in the Presidential election yesterday failed to inject optimism in the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA), which continued to appear marooned in a sea of uncertainty. A day after the victory, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which has only eight Lok Sabha MPs (excluding Agatha Sangma, whose party credentials are in doubt) announced it would boycott the Prime Minister’s farewell dinner for outgoing President Pratibha Patil on Monday night because it was angry at the way it had been treated.

After an NCP working committee meeting, Union minister Praful Patel admitted both party supremo Sharad Pawar and he had not been attending to any official work at their respective ministries since Thursday.

No one was clear exactly what the NCP’s grouse with the government was. Patel said it was not because Pawar had not been named number two in the government. He also said the NCP’s relationship with the UPA would be intact till 2014. However, he added a rider that the NCP would not participate in any government function till a decision was reached on its stand on the UPA.

THE NCP-UPA STAND-OFF ON FOR NOW

• Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel not attending office
   
• NCP decides to boycott PM’s dinner
   
• Agatha Sangma hands her resignation; letter not sent to the PM yet
   
• Matters troubling NCP pertain more to Maharashtra
   
• NCP angry with Maharashtra CM Prithviraj Chavan’s attitude
   
• Pawar and Patel’s resignations still pending before the PM
   
• NCP postpones “final decision” till Tuesday, says it needs to consult its Maharashtra MLAs

Congress sources saw in the NCP’s stance an element of bargaining ahead of a Cabinet reshuffle amid reports Pawar was seeking the power or commerce portfolio for Patel. The fact that negotiations were on was evident when Congress media chief Janardhan Dwivedi went on record to say, “Such situations keep arising in coalition politics. These things are generally resolved through talks.”