Gogoi’s rehabilitation records contrast!

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, January 25: Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi’s performance card in ‘rehabilitating’ violence–affected and flood–affected people of the state is very poor. However, his mastery over ‘political rehabilitation’ is simply matchless.

Some of the eight sulking Congress leaders who were dropped as ministers by Gogoi recently may be appointed as advisers with Cabinet ranks in the very departments which they had headed as ministers, obviously just to rehabilitate them. The eight leaders who were dropped as ministers are Prithibi Majhi, Pradyut Bordoloi, Prati Phukan, Rajib Lochan Pegu, Tanka Bahadur Rai, Akon Bora, Nilomonisen Deka and Gautam Roy. On the day of the swearing–in ceremony, Gogoi had hinted that some of the drooped ministers would be made advisers of some departments.

Meanwhile, the four vacant posts of ministers will be filled up only after the civic body polls. The civic polls are slated for February 9.

In the recent shuffle of the ministry, three parliamentary secretaries have been upgraded as ministers vacating as many posts of parliamentary secretary. Three parliamentary secretaries who were upgraded as ministers are Etua Munda, Chandan Sarkar and Sumitra Doley Patil. Earlier, Bhupen Kumar Bora and Ra Goswami had resigned as parliamentary secretaries when Rahul Gandhi made them AICC secretaries. These apart, two BPF MLAs had resigned as parliamentary secretaries when the party severed its ties with the Congress. Thus, a number of posts of parliamentary secretaries have been vacant. Gogoi, according to sources, is going to rehabilitate some other MLAs in the vacant posts of parliamentary secretary so as to make the government and the party get going till the 2016 Assembly elections.       

Such a rehabilitation exercise does exert its pressure on the state exchequer. Not serious enough to worry the Chief Minister!