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Narendra Modi government is poised to complete six months. We look at the areas where the Modi government is not faring so well
Hiring and sacking
The government sent a strong message when the former chairman of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, Nripendra Misra, was made principal secretary to the prime minister, by changing the appointment rules in the Trai Act. Shunting out finance secretary Arvind Mayaram to tourism and then to the minority affairs ministry within days, to be replaced by Rajasthan chief secretary Rajiv Mehrishi in the finance ministry, made headlines. Late-evening announcements of shuffling dozens of bureaucrats on a single day has become a norm. The government’s spat with governors in Congress-ruled states was another controversy, that peaked with Mizoram Governor Kamla Beniwal being dismissed over “serious allegations’’. The opposition called it ‘’vendetta politics’’ as Beniwal, when she was Gujarat governor earlier, had run-ins with then CM Modi.
Slow pace of reforms
After an election fought largely on the issue of development, many had hoped the new government would unleash a slew of big-bang reforms. But rather than crafting policies for pursuing systemic changes, the government policies seem to be guided by the principle of incrementalism. In the budget, it failed to articulate its vision or initiate any reforms on contentious pieces of legislation such as land, labour and retrospective taxation. The unwillingness to use its massive political mandate is puzzling.
Minorities
The BJP election manifesto said education was the way forward and madrassa education should be not only about the Quran but also about computers. In an interview to the CNN, Modi said: “If anyone thinks Indian Muslims will dance to their (terrorist organisations) tune, they are delusional.”
Yet Hindu-Muslim confrontations, even in places least expected because of economic interdependence, is on the rise. Madrassas are a long way from being modernised. While there is a department of minority affairs, matters relating to the running of madrassas are handled by the ministry of human resource development. And Modi let his Hindu slip show when in the US, at the Madison Square Garden event, he somewhat unexpectedly referred to a group of Bohra Muslims, who had come to hear him speak, as the people whose business would be destroyed if the Jan Dhan Yojana succeeded.
Governance promise
Manmohan Singh headed a huge ministry. The BJP manifesto promised “minimum government, maximum governance”. The council of ministers that took oath on May 26 had 45 members — one of the leanest in recent decades. Modi was lauded for having walked the talk. But the performance of most ministers left much to be desired. The cabinet was perforce enlarged by nearly 50 per cent in early November. It now has 66 ministers.
Centralisation
Too much of centralisation has been a concern. The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) is at the centre of decision-making on everything. Even as numerous groups of ministers (GoM) and empowered groups of ministers (E-GoM), which were an essential part of the previous UPA regime, were blamed for slow decision-making, the Narendra Modi government’s move to put an end to such groups meant all power would be concentrated at one point (read PMO). At times, ministries responsible for taking decisions are going slow as most key approvals are awaited from the top. Even the Indian contingent for the Asian Games in Incheon was vetted by the PMO. There’s been talk of a symbiotic relationship between the Centre and state for overall development of the country, but states are yet to find their due place in the current scheme of things.
One-man show
When Narendra Modi had not yet become BJP prime ministerial candidate, a member of Parliament asked him: “What do you think will be the central issue (of the election)?” Pat came the reply: “Is there any doubt? It will be Modi, of course.” A gifted speaker, a great raconteur and wonderful communicator but the personalisation of the political party is a cause of concern for many in and out of the BJP. Modi seems to have taken over the party and sidelined senior leaders. The issue of state elections also seem to be Modi.
