Let Prime Minister choose his own ministers: NDA leader

NEW DELHI: If NDA does form the next government, BJP leader Narendra Modi should get a free hand as prime minister and must not be burdened by a steering committee that could become a drag on governance, senior Akali leader Naresh Gujral has said.

Gujral told TOI that experience showed that steering committees could be an encumbrance, often becoming parallel power centres and ended up as a distraction rather than serving any useful purpose.

"There is a huge governance deficit that NDA is set to inherit from the UPA as a legacy. The PM should be able to act resolutely on several fronts that need immediate attention," Gujral said.

The Akali leader said Modi could be expected to be mindful of the need to ensure a broad political consensus in the ruling coalition and a potential time consuming consultative mechanism was redundant.

Gujral, who is seen as a sure ministerial pick in an NDA government, refused to comment on his likely assignment.

"I am not arguing for over centralization. But the next PM has to get on with things quickly and a change in the style of governance is very much needed," he said.

More contentiously, Gujral suggested that the PM be allowed to pick his choice of ministers, even from among his allies. "A minister must not be bogged down with catering to a chief minister or a party boss," he said.

A weak PMO under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is seen to have led to policy paralysis even as he failed to discipline errant ministers, resulting in poor governance that hurt the economy.

While speaking out against the "quota" rule in ministry-making, Gujral said the PM should be permitted to choose the best fits for ministries overseeing infrastructure, industry, tourism and labour that have a bearing on employment.

He also batted for curbing the say of Cabinet ministers in selecting secretaries. "It should be completely based on merit," the senior SAD leader said.

He said technocrats could serve in advisory roles rather than manning portfolios so that the political objectives of the coalition were not lost sight of.

The immediate task before the new government should be to revive the economy and "within the first 30-40" days publish a white paper on the state of the treasury.

"The nation should know the state of the treasury and the fiscal deficit situation. There should be a system where expenditure should not be postponed to the next year to show a better fiscal picture," the senior leader said.