P Chidambaram is resisting moves to make him home minister again. According to top level sources in the Congress, the newly-elected MP from Sivaganga in Tamil Nadu, who barely scarped through, wants the finance ministry which he previously held.
Chidambaram, a lawyer by profession, is clever and ambitious enough to realise that the home ministry will be one of the most treacherous portfolios, where success will be hard to come and brickbats and ridicule are the usual dividends.
In view of the highly complicated situation in Pakistan and also other neighbouring states, the home ministry demand through time, energy and lots of luck.
But the bigger challenge before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress President Sonia Gandhi is not about who should be the home minister but who should handle the external affairs portfolio.
A reliable source told rediff.com that Pranab Mukherjee and Montek Singh Ahluwalia are short listed for finance ministry but the real difficulty lies in spotting someone senior with the requisite intellectual polish, wisdom and maturity to handle foreign affairs in a rapidly changing world order and also the volatile South Asian region.
Unsurprisingly, Congress party is still of the opinion that the finance ministry, which is a hot seat of political patronage, should be handled by a 'party man' only. However, a final decision is still pending.
When asked if former UN official Shashi Tharoor or any new faces are likely to be inducted, a source said, "Tharoor may eventually get some post -- if not now, then later."
