Published: Thursday, Jul 1, 2010, 1:42 IST
By Harish Gupta | Place: New Delhi | Agency: DNA
http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_absent-ministers-force-pm-to-cancel-cabinet-meet_1403666
Prime minister (PM) Manmohan Singh cancelled a crucial cabinet meeting scheduled for Thursday after more than a dozen ministers expressed inability to make it.
The meeting was to discuss a caste-based census, among other issues. Also, PM was to apprise the cabinet of the outcome of the Indo-Canada and G-20 talks.
Agriculture and food minister Sharad Pawar is in Singapore, non-conventional energy minister Farooq Abdullah is also abroad, information and broadcasting minister Ambika Soni is holidaying with family, railway minister Mamata Banerjee continues to be in West Bengal, heavy industries minister Vilasrao Deshmukh is also away and so is chemical and fertilisers minister MK Alagiri.
Telecom minister A Raja, who went to Geneva and other world capitals last month and was later busy with the world Tamil conference, wanted rest but rushed to New Delhi for the meeting, only to discover that it had been cancelled.
A senior government functionary jokingly said, “How can the cabinet meet on a day when the super cabinet is holding its first formal meeting with a specific agenda!”
Obviously, he was referring to the national advisory council (NAC) meeting scheduled for Thursday under the chairmanship of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. NAC will take up certain key aspects of the food security bill.
