The tiny Union Territory Puducherry has become the victim of coalition politics. It has been a long wait for the people of the state to have a full cabinet, a council of ministers or an Assembly session almost a month after the Puducherry chief minister N Rangasamy was sworn in on May 7. This will be his fourth stint as chief minister. Interestingly, no minister was sworn in along with him.
Within days of assuming office, Rangasamy tested positive for Covid-19 and was admitted to a hospital in Chennai for treatment. Meanwhile, there is a fight for power-sharing between the two parties. A former Congress veteran, Rangasamy floated his NR (named after him) Congress in 2011 after the party replaced him as chief minister. Rangasamy is a popular leader, accessible and simple.
Often he was found driving his two-wheeler on the streets of Puducherry even as a chief minister. This is the first time that he will be heading a coalition government. However, just four days ago, the BJP state president Swaminathan had announced that the two sides had agreed on a formula and that the BJP would field its nominee for the post of Speaker and name ministers, as decided upon by the party high command.
“We have reached a consensus on sharing of the ministry and there will be no more talks,” he said. Power-sharing is a critical factor as the BJP pointsperson and Union Minister of State G. Kishan Reddy had said that one of its MLAs be made deputy chief minister and at least two others be accommodated as ministers. The BJP has come a long way in its ambition to expand power in the South.
The party which did not have a single MLA has come this far, which is creditable indeed. In the April 6 elections, the AINRC was the senior partner in the alliance but managed to win only 10 seats. In contrast, the BJP, which put up a strong show by winning six of the 10 seats it contested, did quite well. This was possible because it fielded many defectors from the Congress. In the game of arithmetic, apart from the six, it won nominations of three MLAs.
This was a cause of friction within the alliance as the Lt Governor reportedly named them without consultation with the chief minister. The Madras High Court dismissed a plea, seen as backed by the Rangasamy camp, against the nominations. The three nominations by the Centre to the Puducherry Assembly are a result of a peculiar law. In 1962, the then French colonies of Pondicherry, Yanam, and Mahe were clubbed together to form the Union Territory of Pondicherry.
In Parliament, the Centre got the powers to nominate three MLAs. Apart from the three nominated MLAs, the BJP now has the support of three independent members as well. The other three independents support the AINRC. So the BJP can claim 12 seats, getting much closer to the NR Congress. So it was not surprising that almost immediately after the elections, the BJP demanded its share of the pie.
Though a Union territory, Puducherry is very much part of the Tamil heartland. From having just three nominated members between 2016 and 2021 and an MLA in 2001, the BJP has improved its presence this year. The BJP has been working on its strategy since February when the Narayanaswamy government fell. It poached on powerful individuals in the UT from all parties. They helped the party win. Cabinet formation has been delayed for two reasons.
The first was that the chief minister tested Covid positive the day after he took over. The second is that NR is a shrewd politician and knows the threat from the BJP. The 73-year-old is acutely aware of the precarious position of the AINRC when the BJP is aggressively trying to expand its influence in south India. Being in power in the tiny state, BJP hopes to improve its position in the South where it had been trying hard to get an entry for many decades.
Meanwhile, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which was also part of the NDA alliance, is also upset with the BJP. The AIADMK contested four seats and lost all. According to the BJP, the solution is quite close and soon the stalemate will be resolved. The BJP has succeeded in its strategy to vastly improve its position as it did in West Bengal. In contrast, Congress now has two seats compared with 15 of 30 elected seats last time, and its vote share was cut in half.
Meanwhile, it is the people of Puducherry who are hit hard despite having given a decisive victory to the NDA alliance. The least NR should have done was to nominate a number two even if he is in isolation due to Covid.