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Chidambaram leaves his Delhi residence after the verdict on Saturday. Picture by Prem Singh
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New Delhi, Feb. 4: The relief in the spectrum scam is unlikely to change things in North Block’s room no. 134: P. Chidambaram is likely to continue sporting the subdued avatar he has assumed since the controversy broke.
On the face of it, the Union home minister has remained his usual self: a firm taskmaster. But of late, he has begun delegating more work to the bureaucracy to ensure he is not seen as the sole decision-maker.
A North Block source, who has seen the apparent makeover in Chidambaram’s work style, foresaw no drastic changes in the offing. “Once bitten, twice shy,” he said, without elaborating.
Once dubbed “intellectually arrogant” by Digvijaya Singh, Chidambaram’s professional behaviour is said to have changed in subtle ways since he got sucked into the scam. It apparently created the need to come across as more democratic and accommodative. Whether on matters of security clearances or procurement or internal security, he turned more consultative, officials said.
“A few months ago he started setting up committees, especially for security clearances to corporate houses where joint secretaries are part of the decision-making process,” a government official said.
At least three committees to address infrastructure and foreign investment issues have been set up. Officials said this reflected Chidambaram’s changed work style.
When the Supreme Court was hearing Subramanian Swamy’s petition on Thursday, Chidambaram reached office at 9am sharp. He did not attend a group of ministers meeting on the media but seemed in control. In the afternoon, he shuffled five joint secretaries in the ministry.
In contrast, Chidambaram appeared less relaxed today. He did not leave his Safdarjang Road residence in the morning, putting off his Madurai trip and meeting Intelligence Bureau director Nehchal Sandhu at home.
Immediately after the verdict, however, Chidambaram left for the airport, dodging a waiting battery of reporters. At Tirunelveli in the evening, where he addressed a public meeting in support of the Koodankulam nuclear power plant, the minister did not utter a word about the verdict.
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