The process of government-formation got under way on Thursday with the BJP seemingly inclined to keep key departments – Finance, Defence, Home and External Affairs – and its allies reportedly bargaining for plum portfolios and flagging issues such as scrapping of Agniveer scheme and initiating a nationwide caste census to set the agenda. Sources said the new government is likely to be sworn in on Sunday, although no formal communication to this effect had been issued by the Rashtrapati Bhawan.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar along with two Election Commissioners submitted the full list of Lok Sabha winners to the President Droupadi Murmu, bringing to an end the period of Model Code of Conduct.
A meeting of the BJP Parliamentary Party is expected to be held on Friday morning during which the newly-elected MPs will elect their new leader, sources said. This is likely to be followed by a meeting of the NDA MPs. Most of the NDA leaders are already in Delhi whereas TDP supremo and Chief Minister-elect of Andhra Pradesh N. Chandrababu Naidu and Jana Sena Party leader Pawan Kalyan were expected to fly back to the Capital on Thursday evening.
Naidu’s priority
A top BJP source told businessline that Chandrababu Naidu’s priority is to build a capital city – Amaravathi and Vijayawada – for Andhra Pradesh and focus on infrastructure development as also to carry forward the populist and welfarist schemes of his predecessor which have left the state finances in doldrums. “He wants funds on a large scale. Of course, he would want plum portfolios too but nothing that we cannot accommodate,” the BJP source said.
TDP had held the post of the Speaker in the earlier NDA government under former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s leadership. TDP MP G.M.C. Balayogi was Speaker of the Lok Sabha during Vajpayee’s tenure. The JD(U) already holds the post of the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
Meanwhile, insiders in TDP said that Naidu could negotiate for 3 to 5 key berths in the Union Cabinet. Naidu held a brainstorming session with his newly-elected MPs on issues pertaining to government formation at the Centre in Amaravathi.
Nitish’s negotiation
So far as JD(U) is concerned, the priority for Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is to negotiate a financial package for Bihar. “He would also not like to see anyone from his party getting a big portfolio and acquire a national prominence that overshadows him. He will negotiate for portfolios, but I doubt if he is going to make a pitch for Finance or MEA,” said a top BJP source.
The JD(U), however, flagged the issue of Agniveer scheme and caste census. “There is anger among voters on the (short-term army recruitment) Agniveer scheme. Our party wants those shortcomings to be removed, on which people have objections,” said senior JD(U) leader K. C. Tyagi.
Another NDA ally, Chirag Paswan of the Lok Janshakti Party, too said he is in favour of a review of the Agniveer scheme and a nationwide caste census.