It was not so much Dr Manmohan Singh’s new ministers but the Tamil tableau that enthralled me last week. I found myself watching it as if it were the IPL final. From the moment that the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu was wheeled into 10 Janpath bearing yellow lilies for Madame to the moment he sulked off to Chennai followed by family and friends, I watched and watched. What fascinated me was the honest display of venality, the open demand for what they call ATM ministries. He did not just want his children to become ministers in the Government of India, he wanted them to get ministries of their choice and more. It was like one of those children’s birthday parties where some spoilt brat throws the return present back in the face of the birthday girl. It’s frightening to think what Mr Karunanidhi may have demanded if he had more than seventeen seats in Parliament.

If only Sonia Gandhi and the Prime Minister could have told him to take his MPs and shove off. If only they could have told him that they could see no reason why his son, daughter or nephew should become ministers at all. If they could only have told him that the DMK ministers in the last government were lousy and they were not going to inflict them on the people of India once more.

Alas, they seem unable to say boo to anyone so they give us a déjà vu government. But, there is some good news. When I heard that Arjun Singh was being kicked out I got up and did the bhangra. As someone who believes that the most important ministry in the Government of India is HRD I believe that a person of real competence must get HRD this time or we have had it. Thanks to Arjun Singh and Murli Manohar Joshi we have lost ten vital years in which almost nothing was done to sort out the mess in Indian education.

... contd.