Kiran Bedi Gone, Will Dhankhar Go Next?
By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2021-02-17 09:57:40
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The Congress government in Puducherry was carrying out a campaign against the Lt. Governor, Kiran Bedi, for a long time over her alleged role in destabilizing the elected government and putting hurdles in the path of the government in carrying out its policies. In a surprise move, the Centre removed Bedi as governor of the Union territory on Tuesday.
This move comes against the backdrop of another resignation by a Congress MLA which has put the ruling dispensation in a minority. The effective strength of the house has dropped to 28 with the resignations and Congress and its allies have only 14 MLAs with them, whereas the BJP and its allies also have 14.
Chief Minister V Narayanasamy called her removal a "victory of the people". He has been very critical of Bedi and had termed her a "BJP agent" in the past while accusing her of using the Raj Niwas as the hub of anti-government activities. He, along with cabinet ministers and other MLAs, had also staged a sit-in on the roads leading to the Raj Niwas in January this year to highlight the problems she was creating for the government.
But is it really a victory for the people or another masterstroke from Amit Shah? Many analysts see this as a move to preempt the Congress from using Bedi's role as campaign fodder in the ensuing elections. They say that the Congress was sure to tell the people that the Centre had not let them work for the benefit of the people as the Lt. Governor was "hampering" the working of the government. With Bedi gone, this plank will no longer be available to them.
A similar situation exists in West Bengal, another state where elections are due in a couple of months. State governor Jagdeep Dhankhar is continuously at loggerheads with the state government and chief minister Mamata Banerjee is quite upset with his role in sending âexaggeratedâ and adverse law and order reports to the Centre and calling state officials to Raj Bhawan at the drop of a hat. Will West Bengal also see a change in the Raj Bhawan soon?
