By appointing Sushil Kumar Shinde as the Union home minister, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seems to have used the Indira Gandhi formula of giving the coveted position to a former chief minister.

Gandhi's preference for a former chief minister was based on her belief that since the home ministry deals extensively with states, it was important to have someone heading this portfolio with the wider background particularly since it concerns the sensitive matter of Centre-state relations

Read the report on the Times of India.