Reshuffle in Haryana

Chief Minister Khattar has not offered a single good reason for his unprovoked Cabinet reshuffle. If poor performance needed to be punished, the axe then should have fallen on the Chief Minister himself since he holds the Home portfolio and the collapse of law and order machinery during the Jat agitation marks the single most shameful happening of his regime. Again in Rohtak a college girl has been reportedly gang-raped twice by the same set of goons. It seems the fear of law has disappeared in certain parts of the state.

Khattar has other priorities. Saffronisation of education and cow politics occupy his attention more than anything else. His advisers should bring it to his notice that such things can have serious repercussions as is evident from the violence in Gujarat. With a business-as-usual approach, Khattar has muddled along so far. He has not even pursued cases that can politically benefit him like the Vadra land deal which has been allowed to linger. It seems the BJP has made its peace with the builders who got benefits from the previous Hooda government. Only the Enforcement Directorate has gone after Hooda for favouring Associated Journal Ltd in one land deal in Panchkula.

Manohar Lal Khattar is a changed man today. When he took charge, he appeared to be a simple man with an RSS baggage. What he seems to have learnt, probably by watching the Badals’ lavish lifestyle in the neighbouring state, is how to enjoy good things of life when in power. Tired of riding a 2007 Mercedes Benz, he has acquired a Land Cruiser worth Rs 1.35 crore for himself. Buying an aircraft for him is also on the government agenda. He is learning how to distribute or deny patronage. Friday’s exercise shows who has fallen in and out of the Chief Minister’s favour. A reshuffle offers an opportunity to reposition the government for future challenges, remove deficiencies in governance and avoid the recurrence of past mistakes. Khattar has tried no such thing. He has made no effort to bring in talent from outside.