Not looking at IMF chief's post now: Montek
Amid speculation that he may be a contender for the top job at IMF, which has been hit by a sex scandal involving its current chief, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia today said he was not looking at any such posts at this point.
"No comments. I am not looking at any such posts as of now," Ahluwalia told reporters when asked whether he is in the race for the top post at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
He, however, added that 'the events are unfortunate and we have to wait and see how the case evolves'.
On the impact of the development at the IMF on the Eurozone crisis, he said: "We have to wait and see who the Fund comes up as the next head'.
Ahluwalia was speaking after delivering the Second Foundation Day Lecture at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research here today.
IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn was arrested from a plane minutes before flying out of New York for allegedly molesting a city hotel maid.
He was later produced before a New York court today. His arrest has sent shock waves through French politics - he was likely French presidential candidate - and left the IMF in turmoil.
The 67-year-old Ahluwalia's name has been doing the rounds for the top post at the Washington-based multilateral lender.
Observers, however, say that his age may be a considered negative factor as there is said to be an age limit of 65 years for the top job.
Besides, there have never an instance of any person from India, or even from country like China, getting the coveted job at IMF.
Earlier Ahluwalia had served as the first director of the IMF's Independent Evaluation Office. He started his career in the World Bank. Later, he joined the government as an economic adviser in the finance ministry in 1979.
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