Bhopal: It is the common refrain of the ministers of state (MoS) that it is the cabinet ministers who wield real power and monopolise decision-making, leaving them little to do.
However, for a change, it is the MoS who are ruling the roost in the ongoing transfer season in the state. While the cabinet ministers have a say only in the department(s) they hold, the MoS are interfering in the affairs of three to four departments.
After the latest expansion of the council of ministers, CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan gave independent charge of one department to each MoS. They are also the second-in-command in at least one or more departments held by their cabinet ministers. Their writ is running unchallenged in the departments which they hold in independent charge and they are also getting names added and deleted in the transfer lists of the department of which they are MoS.
Some cabinet ministers have delegated the power to transfer class three and four employees to the MoS. Deepak Joshi is holding the independent charge of technical education department and he is the MoS of school education and labour departments. Lal Singh Arya holds Narmada Valley Development department in independent charge and is the MoS of GAD and SC, ST welfare departments. Surendra Patwa is in-charge of culture and tourism departments and MoS of agriculture department. Sharad Jain is independently holding charge of medical education and MoS of health department.
Vishwas Sarang has co-operatives in independent charge and panchayats and rural development as MoS. Sanjay Pathak holds MSME department in independent charge and higher education and social justice as MoS. Suryaprakash Meena holds charge of horticulture and food processing independently and of forest department as MoS. Lalita Yadav controls the backward classes welfare department in independent charge and of woman and child welfare as MoS.
Some cabinet ministers are upset by the interference by MoS in transfers. Forest minister Gauri Shankar Shejwar is not ready to brook any interference in transfers in forest department. Rustam Singh had advised Jain to concentrate on medical education department.
A cabinet minister argues that when the MoS have departments in independent charge and they can take decisions regarding them like cabinet ministers then why should they interfere in the transfers of departments of which they are MoS? They should better concentrate on the departments completely under their control.
