Indian Human Resources Minister Arjun Singh's dramatic resignation from the union cabinet comes as an insider's body-blow to the leadership of Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. As a senior leader of Congress with considerable clout of a known critic of the government's economic policies, he has the potential to muster strong within the party to pose a challenge to Rao's leadership.

It is the timing of his resignation which is so loaded with meaning and bodes ill for Rao. The Prime Minister s sagged image in the wake of a Congress electoral rout in two key southern states, including Andhra Pradesh, his home state, had made him vulnerable inside the party. As if to compound his problems furthermore came the parliamentary commotion over the food minister's alleged dilly-dallying on sugar import to favour some private parties. Narasimha Rao sacked this minister along with two other ministers who drew flak in a parliamentary investigation into a 1.7 billion dollar securities scandal is 1991. Just when he seemed to have staved off a crisis comes now this setback from Arjun Singh.

With an imminent restiveness in the Congress hierarchy, if not an outright power struggle, the party whose popularity has been already on the wane will be hard-put to face the upcoming crucial elections in the five states. If the Congress fares badly in these. Rao's position will be further weakened in terms of leading the party through the general election scheduled for early 1996.

Arjun Singh has resigned asking for a change in Congress leadership and its policies. The recital of his reasons for leaving the government reads like a serious indictment on Rao's handling of Congress affairs and his running of the government. Singh says. Rao has reduced Congress (I) from a national party to a regional one. And. even there the party has suffered an electoral defeat. The dissenter has basically castigated the economic liberalisation policy which has liberalised' corruption. Singn has also alleged a cover-up in the investigations, into tl^e assassination of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. To know Arjun Singh’s mind perhaps one should try to read into his favouring charismatic leadership for India.