P Chidambaram – Will the Congress bank on him?

Biplob Ghosal

Finance Minister P Chidambaram is one of the most well read and articulate among contemporary politicians. Though he has chosen not to contest the Lok Sabha polls – he nominated his son as the replacement candidate – it would be premature to write him off from the power stakes.

With Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi repeatedly denying that he is not interested in the PM's post and even Nandan Nilekani's name doing the rounds for the top job, the astute Chidambaram, who shares a good rapport with the Gandhi family might have a chance to become the prime minister of the country if the Congress forms the government.

An alumnus of Chennia's Presidency College and Harvard Business School, Chidambaram appears to have angled himself to a position of importance despite the uncertainty facing the party.

Chidambaram made his presence felt in national politics when he was inducted into the Union Council of Ministers in 1985 as a Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Commerce and then in the Ministry of Personnel. He was elevated to the rank of Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions in January, 1986. He was instrumental in ushering in important civil service reforms at that time. In October, 1986, he was also appointed as Minister of State for Internal Security in the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Ironically, in 1996 because of a disagreement with party’s decision he quit the Congress and joined Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC). In the 1996 Lok Sabha polls the TMC along with regional and national level parties formed a coalition government. Chidambaram was alloted the key Finance Ministry. However, the coalition government didn’t last long and fell in 1998. He was appointed as the Finance Minister. Chidambaram presented what many commentators described as the “dream budget” in which the rates of personal and corporate income tax rates were brought down dramatically.

Chidambaram has served as a Union Cabinet Minister of Finance and Home Affairs in the Congress-led UPA governments from 2004-2014. He had served as Finance Minister of India from May 2004 to November 2008. However, after the resignation of Shivraj Patil in the wake of the 26/11 attacks he also served as Home Minister from December 2008 to July 2012. He was reappointed the Finance Minister after Pranab Mukherjee was elected as the President of India.