Say hello to Pranab Babu

Pranab Mukherjee is a seasoned survivor. It will be foolish to underestimate his potential in the hot, new seat

Pranay Sharma Delhi

Unlike most politicians from Bengal, who prefer to be addressed as ‘dada’ to establish their familiarity with the masses, Pranab Mukherjee has opted for the suffix ‘babu’ to his name to maintain a formal relationship. His political career spans over five decades, yet this is the only time he has won in a direct election. He can hardly be called leader of the masses. In fact, he has always been a behind-the-scene person. Perhaps he prefers it that way. And this role has served him well.

Mukherjee returns to the foreign minister’s office after more than a decade. Opinion is divided if his new job profile should be seen as yet another indication of his diminishing importance within the Congress party and in the UPA government. Some say he was not keen to give

up the defence ministe’s portfolio and came to the foreign ministry reluctantly. Indeed, if he was disappointed, then, surely, he has done a good job of hiding it. Those who saw him say,  Mukherjee seemed elated when Foreign Secretary Shiv Shankar Menon called to congratulate him hours before he was to be sworn in as the foreign minister.

“Since India cannot change its neighbours, it is desirable to live with them in peace and create a tension-free situation on the borders,” Mukherjee started off his first day in the ministry of external affairs (MEA) office with the right sound byte. Certainly, in the days to come, he would need more than politically correct quotes, not only to survive but also to excel in office.

The foreign minister’s role in the present Indian set-up is two-fold. He not only formulates India’s foreign policy in close cooperation with the Prime Minister and key aides in South Block, he also has to be physically present in many of the meetings and joint commissions that New Delhi has put in place with major world powers. The absence of a full-fledged foreign minister had raised doubts in the minds of many countries on whether India is serious in continuing with the agreed mechanism that was put in place to strengthen bilateral relations.

Although there were many articulate and eager aspirants in Congress who wanted to move into the coveted office, there were not too many options for Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh. Mukherjee is not only senior, he is also one of the most experienced and seasoned leaders in the party, who has held a number of key portfolios, including that of the foreign ministe’s. Therefore, the new man had to be of Mukherjee’s stature and rank.

A lot of changes have taken place in the last decade since his last stint in MEA. One of the highlights of his tenure then was the Mahakali Treaty with Nepal—an agreement he managed after protracted, hard-nosed bargaining with  politicians in Kathmandu (The treaty is widely considered unequal and unfair in Nepal, and now there are calls, including from the Maoists, for a fresh review.)

The stakes for India are much higher in the current scenario. A big question mark hangs over the fate of the much-hyped civilian nuclear deal that the Prime Minister signed with George Bush. Besides, putting India’s bilateral relations with Pakistan back on the peace tracks will be a major challenge, and so will be the creation of a meaningful policy to deal with the neighbours. The visit of the Chinese president to India is due this month and a lot depends on how the UPA government takes forward New Delhi’s relations with Beijing.

Mukherjee’s challenges are not restricted to dealing with foreign powers alone. He is likely to face quite a few

from within the Indian establishment,

particularly from some of the Prime Minister's close aides, who have got used to having the final word in foreign-policy matters in the past months. But this man is a seasoned campaigner; he is well-equipped to deal with issues that usually fall in the grey areas. In the past he has faced several adverse situations. But in the end, he has managed to survive and carry on. Hence, it will be foolish to underestimate his potential in the hot, new seat.