NEW DELHI, March 3: The surprise defeat of Jaswant Singh in Rajasthan may tip the balance in favour of Murli Manohar Joshi for the finance minister's job in case a BJP-led government is sworn in.A former professor of physics at Allahabad University, Joshi was frequently involved in verbal sparring with United Front finance minister P.
Chidambaram in Parliament over issues like per capita income growth and fiscal deficit.
Joshi's grasp of the finer points of economics may not be as good as that of Jaswant Singh or Manmohan Singh. But he knows enough to stake a claim to be at the helm in North Block.
But given the fact that the BJP will be completely dependent on its allies to form a government at the centre, it is likely that some of them may stake a claim to the finance portfolio. The AIADMK could be one such ally.
Though the BJP is considered to have a strong claim for being given the first shot at ministry-making, the situation is not yet clear.
The Congress is trying to furiously cobbletogether a majority with the help of UF constituents.
In case the effort succeeds and the President invites the Congress to form a government, Manmohan Singh is likely to get back his old portfolio.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
