The most critical functional position in the Indian Union is that of the Chief Minister. The CM not only takes care of the complete and comprehensive administration of the state, but is also legally mandated to be the strongest link in the execution in most of the Govt of India schemes and projects. The depth and granularity the state administration has is the cornerstone of our country’s administration and the bulwark of the Union govt. One PM and twenty eight CMs are able to work as a professional team on a day to day basis, then we would be in a situation 100 times better than our current self created predicament.
Please rattle your brains as to what should be the education, expertise, experience and competencies for this multifaceted politico-governance, finance / economy and societal responsibility role. While you are trying to fathom it out, the constitutional mechanism does not prescribe anything. It conversely means that any MLA or MLC can do this job and the expectation is that he or she can do it exceedingly well. We have seen all sorts of CMs in independent India, and I don’t think even the best of the research will be able to throw up a template for future reference and action.
The beauty of this post is that each one feels he has been successful as the Chief Executive of the state, while many keep battling with their own ghosts. CMs have come out of all sorts of magical selection and continued to work with the magical support, constitutional provisions notwithstanding. It has taken a long time for Biren Singh of Manipur to realise what he was legally bound to deliver, and by what margins he missed. He also had all the support of powers that be. This can be called Magical Continuance. Then you have the regional parties or one state parties, they are also one leader parties, and whatever happens the person rules. You can call it misrule and can happen for decades together. This is Divine Selection.
The Magical Selection really comes into play in large national parties, where winning an election is only one party of the game, but putting the right person at the helm of the affairs is generally more important. “Right Person” can mean anything, with no parameters in place, as we found in the recent case of Delhi. One thing is for sure, none of these big parties will allow the legislature party to decide its own leader. The leader who heads a state needs to be a puny. What a plight! Surprise candidates becoming CMs happens again and again, if the surprise means excellence and competence, we can still take it albeit with a cup of salt. Even for continuance, please refer to the selection principle. The unseen hand has to be on your head. How do seniors work under juniors? A new school of Political Human Resource Management seems to be in the making. At times the CM and the cabinet are summarily packed off too, giving way for a fresh looking dispensation, so that the sins of its predecessors does mean a beating at the hustings.
HOW ILL FATED IS THE STRONGEST LINK IN THE COUNTRY’S GOVERNANCE MECHANISM?
Sanjay Sahay
Have a nice evening.