Kyndiah, a tribal leader from Meghalaya, has come in for criticism within his Congress party following allegations of corruption in the ministry for development of the northeast that is also headed by him.

Party officials said the top leadership of the Congress had also taken note of accusations that Kyndiah was using his ministerial position to promote his son L.K. Kyndiah and his daughter.

L.K. Kyndiah assists his father in the northeast development ministry but many are unhappy at what they perceive as the "large role" played by the son in important decision-making matters.

Congress officials also admitted they were aware of complaints of corruption in the northeast development ministry, which oversees allocation of money from a special non-lapsable pool of funds created for the region.

Every central ministry has to deposit 10 percent of its annual budgetary outlay in this pool for taking up projects in the region, and the total amount available now runs into billions of rupees.

"There have been several allegations of kickbacks being demanded for clearing projects meant for the northeast," said a tribal Congress leader from the region.

"It is also sad that nothing much seems to have been done for the region even though Kyndiah is a man from the region. In fact, the northeast could easily become the gateway for trade with the ASEAN region," the leader said.

Several names are already doing the rounds as a possible replacement for Kyndiah in the event of a cabinet reshuffle.

Among them are veteran politician and MP Rishang Keishing of Manipur, Heavy Industries Minister Santosh Mohan Dev, who belongs to Assam, and central minister Oscar Fernandes, who is currently part of the government team negotiating with the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) rebels.

A surprise addition to the list is former Lok Sabha speaker Purno Sangma, who has just returned to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and mended fences with its chief, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar.

Though Sangma has publicly said he does not want to become a central minister, Pawar is believed to be keen on his induction into the central government when the prime minister reshuffles his cabinet.