The Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis has complained that many bureaucrats in his administration moved slowly and were not cooperating with his government's initiatives which ultimately hampered the people's works. He made the grievance publicly during a program in Nagpur and his comments attracted intense displeasure from the bureaucracy.
Even political analysts and opposition leaders saw this complaint as a lame excuse by Fadnavis for many of the failures of his government. However, he could be forgiven for putting up a strong sentiment among the public on a public forum. Just a little more than a year, people watched him launch one after another attack on the ruling parties, when he was leader of opposition and state president of Bharatiya Janata Party.
Fadnavis is a very youthful CM and the citizens expected him to lead an enthusiastic and active government. However, ever since he sworn in on October 31 last year, his government was perceived going slow and having a staggered journey. One reason for this laggardness was the constant opposition by the 'ally' Shiv Sena and another was the non-cooperation from babus.
After decades of Congress rule, these babus became very cosy with the Congress and Nationalist Congress Party. Except for four and half years’ rule of SS-BJP during intervening years, the officers enjoyed patronage and company of Congress leaders. Even today, they are uneasy to work with any other dispensation and many of them are said to be taking orders from former rulers. The people having their ears to the state secretariat in Mumbai even vouch that many of the bureaucrats routinely jest on their new masters.
Not that the mandarins in Mantralaya were quite competent during Congress rule or moved in haste during those years. Even when Congress was in power, the bureaucracy, in true Indian fashion and largely following the British tradition, worked at an excruciating pace. Some CMs tried to change this situation and were successful to an extent after acquiring stern postures over the years.
A. R. Antulay was one of such ruler who tried to rein in the babus and left his stamp on the administration. Antulay was known as a dynamic politician and attracted fame for his prompt and efficient decision-making. Not only he decided on matters instantly, he looked to it that they were implemented to the core. Shankarrao Chavan and Sharad Pawar came to be known as good administrators during their tenures as CMs. In fact, Chavan was so demanding in his functioning that he came to be called as Head Master.
Sadly, the latter CMs could not keep up the tempo and secretary-level officials got hold on the functioning of the government. Matters only got worsened during last two decades.
The matters were confounded by the fact that most members of the BJP-SS cabinet, which is in place at the moment, are first-timers. CM Fadnavis himself leads the charge in this regard also. Eknath Khadse, the lone BJP minister in his cabinet who held the post during the saffron alliance’s last government from 1995-99, has not helped the matter in any way as he has not recovered yet from his fretting for not being made CM in Fadnavis’ place.
Thus, babus take advantage of their increase and they have the field left open for them as they claim more experience than the elected representatives who are technically their superiors. This has led to wrangling between two these arms of the government. It manifested some months ago when Environment Minister Ramdas Kadam kept thousands of files in limbo and refused to sign on them as secretary of his ministry wanted powers to sign on them.
It took CM Fadnavis himself to intervene in favor of his cabinet colleague. However, the episode only reinforced the theory that the political and administrative branches of the government do not share bonhomie. No surprise then that governance has taken a beating in the Maharashtra and people are openly asking – who rules the state?
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