In Modi’s Chessboard, Odisha Greenhorn Ashwini Vaishnaw Is The Crusader Knight

The biggest takeaway for the BJP’s Odisha unit in the recent reshuffle of the Narendra Modi government is the elevation of Ashwini Vaishnaw (in pic), a first-time MP and political greenhorn, as a cabinet minister with the important portfolios of railways and IT. That PM Modi chose Vaishnaw, the lone BJP Rajya Sabha MP from the state, over much stronger claimants from among the seven Lok Sabha MPs (the eighth, Pratap Sarangi, lost out in the reshuffle sweepstakes) for a berth in the cabinet, in itself, carried a message. It is obvious that the former IAS officer was preferred for his proven efficiency both in the public and private sector rather than because he is an MP from Odisha.

Ordinarily, Vaishnaw’s elevation would have been seen as the clipping of the wings of Dharmendra Pradhan, the new education minister and the BJP’s face in Odisha since 2014, as it would create an alternative power centre in the state unit. The fact that the petroleum ministry, which had been with Pradhan since Modi took over as PM in 2014, was taken away from him might have reinforced such an impression. But that is not quite the way it is being interpreted in political circles in the state. Most observers feel Pradhan remains the unquestioned ­numero uno in the party as Vaishnaw has never really been part of the Odisha BJP. In fact, some analysts see Pradhan’s invisible hand in the former bureaucrat’s induction as a way to checkmate the ­latter’s IAS batchmate and Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi, a strong aspirant for a ministerial berth. At a time when public anger is at its peak over petrol prices breaching the Rs 100 mark, divesting Pradhan of the ­petroleum ministry is being seen as a way of saving him from public wrath. In any case, he has got two important portfolios—education and skill development—where there is plenty of scope for him to show his mettle in the days ahead.

The replacement of Balasore MP Pratap Sarangi with Mayurbhanj MP Bishweswar Tudu is of a piece with the BJP’s new thrust on adivasis in the run-up to the 2024 general elections. The party lacked an adivasi face in the Union council of ministers since Sundargarh MP Juel Oram was cold shouldered after Modi took over as PM for a second time in 2019. Tudu’s ­induction has filled the void.

But while Tudu’s induction may have pleased the adivasis, who comprise nearly 22 per cent of the population in Odisha, it has left western Odisha, which has always been a stronghold of the BJP, thoroughly disappointed. For the record, five of the party’s eight Lok Sabha MPs are from western Odisha.

(This appeared in the print edition as "Reshuffle Raffle and Ruffle")

By Sandeep Sahu in Bhubaneswar