Odisha's opposition BJD forms shadow cabinet to counter BJP. Here's what it means
BJD chief Naveen Patnaik
In what could be seen as a lesson in politics for the rival INDIA opposition bloc in Lok Sabha, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) party in the eastern state of Odisha formed a shadow cabinet to scrutinise work done by the inaugural Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. The opposition BJD assigned 50 of its 51 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) to various departments of the government to form a shadow government, a move akin to Britain’s Westminster system.
The move by BJD president and former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik came ahead of the budget session of the state assembly, slated to begin on July 22. The BJD chief aims to kill two birds with a single stone here: Keeping the party united after being booted out of power for the first time in24 years and keeping a check on the BJP government of Mohan Majhi.
“The Opposition works as a watchdog of public interests in a democracy. By keeping a close watch on the performance of various departments of the state government and actively participating in the discussions related to them in the Assembly, it can help protect the rights of the people of the state as well as voice their concerns. Accordingly, Leader of Opposition (LoP) Naveen Patnaik has given responsibility to 50 elected members of the BJD to monitor various programmes of the departments,” BJD said in a statement.
The shadow cabinet ministers are expected to carefully monitor the work done by comparatively inexperienced new BJP ministers in the state.
For instance, former Finance Minister Prasanna Acharya has been asked to look after the finance department whereas former Energy Minister Pratap Deb will deal with General Administration & Public Grievance. Both of these departments are currently held by the CM himself.
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Former minister Niranjan Pujari will monitor home, food, civilsupplies andconsumer welfare departments while senior BJD MLA and former Agriculture Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain will keep an eye onrevenue anddisaster management departments.
What is a shadow cabinet?
When opposition lawmakers come together to individually assign themselves government departments to monitor developments and highlight issues of importance, it's called a shadow cabinet.
It is a relativelynew concept in India. BJP has tried forming shadow cabinets in states like Maharashtra, Goa, Punjab and Delhi in the past. Congress also formed a shadow cabinet in Madhya Pradesh in 2014.
(With inputs from agencies)