Congressmen debate Orissa CM’s dismissal

Senior Congressmen of the state, claiming proximity to 10 Janpath, who are self-appointed emissaries of Sonia to Bhubaneswar, have already started giving the impression that the search for Gamang’s successor is on.

Though a majority of the Congressmen here have a lot to complain about the functioning of the government, particularly the relief and rescue operations, ironically, they are not in favour of any change at this juncture. For they fear that a change of guard would bring the cyclone relief activities to a standstill and send wrong signals to the people.

Some of them do not see any point in such anexercise when the Assembly polls are less than four months away. “Replacing Gamang would not only endorse the Opposition allegations of poor governance, governmental apathy and bungling in relief, it would also be a nasty reflection on Sonia’s immaturity,” said a Cabinet minister who, incidentally, is a Gamang- basher. “Sonia would be acting pretty much the same way as Gamang who has been the butt of ridicule for changing his chief secretaries within a short span,” he pointed out.

The uncertainty with regard to Gamang’s continuance has already begun to take its toll. His government is admittedly not getting cent per cent support of the bureaucracy and some of his ministers have turned indifferent and are criticising his style of functioning openly. A couple of his cabinet colleagues even regret having lobbied to dislodge former Chief Minister J.B. Patnaik.

Observers said that attempts to remove him from the top post have reportedly compounded his worries and made him feel insecure. One cannot expecthim to concentrate on monitoring the relief and rehabilitation operations in the cyclone-ravaged areas when he is unsure of his position, they added.

Battered after the Congress debacle in the last Lok Sabha elections, Gamang was passing through a rough patch before the cyclones hit coastal Orissa in rapid succession. A sizeable number of Congress MLAs camped in New Delhi soon after the elections, demanding his removal. Though the Congress leadership was reportedly in a mood to relent to the pressure, it was hard put to find a replacement for him. And the same continues to be a big poser for the Congress.

Sources close to him, however, dismiss speculation about his replacement as “totally baseless”. “The AICC, on the other hand, has commended Gamangji for his good work in the post-cyclone period. Rumours are being floated deliberately to create confusion in the administration and the political system,” they claimed.