New Delhi, October 22: Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on Thursday appeared to be throwing his hat in the ring for Chief Ministership, saying there was no hard and fast rule in Congress that only an MLA could be elected to the post.
“There is no hard and fast rule in Congress that only an MLA could be the Chief Minister,” he said.
Deshmukh, who was the second longest serving Chief Minister of Maharashtra after the late Vasantrao Naik, however, said that it was for the party MLAs and the high command to decide whether who should be the CM.
In reply to a question on whether he would like to complete his “unfulfilled task” as CM, he said it was for the high command to decide.
“I am happy at the Centre. The party high Command will decide on this issue and I will be happy with that decision,” he said.
Deshmukh is a Rajya Sabha member who was made the Cabinet minister after the Lok Sabha elections.
He was replaced by Ashok Chavan as Chief Minister last year in the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai terror strike.
The Congress has done well in Maharashtra in both the Lok Sabha elections held earlier this year as also assembly polls under the leadership of Chavan as CM.
Clearly indicating that he sees a bigger role for himself, he even sought to take credit for the poll verdict, he said, “Whatever decisions I took during the four-and-a-half year period during my Chief ministership, it was carried forward by Ashok Chavan and my stand was vindicated by the people of Maharashtra”.
Asked to judge Ashok Chavan’s tenure as Chief Minister, Deshmukh said, “He got only six months’ time and two polls in between. So, it is too early to judge Ashok Chavan’s tenure but he nevertheless did a good job.”
Deshmukh also made it appoint to attribute the victory to the teamwork in Maharashtra Congress.
But there is no denying that Deshmukh, who had been heading the high power election management committee, was one of the most sought after campaigners in the Assembly polls.
MPCC president Manikrao Thakre on the other hand is playing it safe. Asked who would be the CM, Thakre said, “The tradition in Congress is that views of legislators are taken into account and Congress president Sonia Gandhi decides the name which is then accepted by legislators. The same system will continue, there is no question of diverting from that.”
NCP has on the other hand has laid down its arms and is willing to go with any person the Congress party. Party chief Sharad Pawar made it clear that the Congress would decide on the Chief Minister’s post, thereby virtually dismissing a demand voiced by his party colleague and Deputy Chief Minister Chagan Bhujbal that the office be rotated.
—Agencies