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Venkaiah Naidu for vice-president, but does Modi have ministers to handle key portfolios?

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Rahul Shrivastava
Rahul ShrivastavaJul 18, 2017 | 12:41

Venkaiah Naidu for vice-president, but does Modi have ministers to handle key portfolios?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi now has one more reason to rejig his council of ministers. M Venkaiah Naidu, chosen as NDA’s nominee for the post of vice-president on Monday night, resigned from the Cabinet leaving two of his portfolios - urban development and information and broadcasting - as ministries without a senior minister.

In March this year, Manohar Parrikar moved from the defence ministry to the Goa CM’s office. The ministry was placed in the hands of Arun Jaitley, already the finance and corporate affairs minister.

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Later, in May this year, environment minister Anil Madhav Dave passed away. His portfolio was added to the charge of science and technology minister Harsh Vardhan

Given the constitution of the electoral college for V-P polls, it's certain that Naidu will move to the 6, Maulana Azad Road, residence of the vice-president and the prime minister will have to decide who steps into Naidu's shoes. Some sources say that Modi will, as an immediate measure, give senior cabinet ministers the urban development ministry and charge of information and broadcasting.

But both ministries are critical. An active prime minister who wants information about his government’s policies and initiatives to reach the maximum number of people can't work too long with a part time I&B minister.

The urban development ministry is the nodal body for Modi's pet smart city project. And a full time minister is needed to get this delivered on the ground, as the Lok Sabha polls are less than two years away.

Similarly, finance minister Jaitley is stretched due to the pressures of a heavy economic agenda, including implementation of GST, FDI, privatisation of lossmaking public sector entities like Air India and a roadmap for economic revival.

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The defence portfolio is hot currently, and has been so for some time. The Pakistan border has been volatile, especially with the Indian Army taking its gloves off and striking harder than ever.

Constant Chinese incursions and the Doklam standoff have created a thick icy layer of tension which needs diplomatic healing and strategic and defence-oriented dealing.

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Smriti Irani has been given the I&B ministry. Photo: India Today

The environment ministry since the movement of Prakash Javadekar to the HRD ministry awaits a full time minister. As the need for infrastructure spending and investment rises to revive the economy, environmental concerns are being raised. The absence of a full time minister exposes the government to charges of reducing the status of the ministry to a mere “clearance table”.

Modi first expanded his cabinet in November 2014 when he inducted 21 new faces, including Parrikar as defence minister.

In July last year, Modi undertook another reshuffle in which he appointed Javadekar as the HRD minister, replacing Smriti Irani, who was shifted to textiles.

Now the PM has a not so easy task to perform. He has to fill vacancies, ensure that the ministries deliver on promises and men of impeccable integrity drive them.

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A senior minister said: “The (Parliament) session has started so someone will get Mr Naidu's portfolios as a stop-gap arrangement. But then a reshuffle and even fresh inductions are needed.”

Sources say someone like parliamentary affairs, chemicals and fertilisers minister Ananth Kumar may get Naidu's urban development portfolio as additional charge till a permanent arrangement is made. Kumar has handled the ministry in the past too.

While there was no clarity on whether someone like Jaitley will be the stop-gap I&B minister or Javadekar, who has served in the ministry, reports from the PMO say the portfolio has been handed over to Smriti Irani.

No one is ready to hazard a guess when Modi will fill these vacancies or shuffle the council or portfolios.

BJP president Amit Shah too has to decide on some bread and butter issues. Yogi Adityanath, MP from Gorakhpur, took over as Uttar Pradesh CM and Keshav Maurya, Phoolpur MP, was made his deputy. Since their votes were needed for the presidential polls both were asked not to resign from the Lok Sabha. 

Now that the presidential polls are over, both need to resign and get elected to either of the two Houses in the UP Assembly. They will need two safe seats. Plus, the BJP needs to find candidates for the by-poll.

Post the party’s emphatic win in the UP Assembly, the routed opposition is expected to unite in fielding a candidate. If the rivals get together, the BJP’s task in the prestige battle would be tougher.

Last updated: July 19, 2017 | 12:33
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