How Gehlot's deft power play makes Congress leadership cut a sorry figure
THE DEFT power play by veteran Ashok Gehlot in full public glare in Rajasthan Sunday, after having announced his decision to contest for the high-stake Congress presidential election, has once again raised questions on the party leadership's ability to manoeuvre decisions towards desired outcomes.
The Congress leadership – the Gandhi family – were caught off guard by the strategic play by Gehlot who emphatically signalled he would not be a pushover and would like to remain the king in his backyard. This despite the fact that Gehlot had been very clearly indicating he would like the views of the MLAs to be heard on the issue of selecting his successor.
With the Congress leadership more or less not keen on Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot contesting the party presidential election after the events that unfolded in Jaipur on Sunday, a sense of uncertainty has gripped the party over the contest. With just three days left for the nomination process to close, the leadership is trying to navigate the situation despite professing neutrality in the event of a contest. According to sources, senior Congress leader A K Antony has been called to Delhi for discussions. On Monday, she held talks with veteran leader Kamal Nath who is not keen to leave Madhya Pradesh.
Amid the political crisis in Rajasthan, Congress leader and Rajasthan former deputy minister Sachin Pilot arrived in Delhi on Tuesday. However, there was no confirmation about his schedule here with sources close to him saying that no meetings were fixed so far. CM Gehlot has indicated earlier that he is keen for a leader close to him to be appointed the successor. He is against Sachin Pilot taking over and hence, the resignation of the MLAs is likely a signal that he wants to continue as Chief Minister till he is elected Congress president. Gehlot and Pilot were at loggerheads over the chief minister's post soon after the Congress won the Assembly elections in December 2018.
Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot leaves for Delhi from Jaipur.
Chhattisgarh minister TS Singh Deo on Wednesday slammed Congress MLAs loyal to Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot for indiscipline and "disobeying" the observers sent by the party high command, which was "inappropriate".
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He also wondered how a senior leader like Gehlot could not control the MLAs and such a situation surfaced.
“The way some ministers and MLAs (in Rajasthan) crossed every limit of discipline was inappropriate..It is not acceptable that they boycotted observers sent by the party high command and skipped the meeting (of Congress legislature party),” Singh Deo told reporters here.
The Congress unit in Rajasthan plunged into a crisis after 82 MLAs participated in a parallel meeting held at the Jaipur residence of a minister loyal to Gehlot laying down conditions for the party.
They did not attend the official legislature party meeting convened for passing a resolution authorising the Congress chief to appoint a successor to Gehlot, who was to contest the Congress presidential election.
“Instead of speaking before the media, they should present their opinion or whatever condition they wanted to put in the meeting of the legislature party. It has been the tradition of Congress that the final call on any issue is taken by the party's high command. We have seen that the opinion of every MLA is sought independently (by party observers) but they (rebel MLAs) wanted to supersede this process and meet in the group which is against the transparent and democratic system of the party,” said Singh Deo, who holds health and family welfare portfolios.
Singh Deo said he was surprised that such a situation surfaced despite the senior leader like Gehlot being there.
"It was his accountability (to keep them in order). He had been meeting the party's high command. Then how did the situation go out of control (in Rajasthan)? How did 92 MLAs reach the Speaker's house tendering their resignations and refusing to go before party observers? It is sad, surprising and unacceptable,” he said.
Queried if he doubted the ability of Gehlot, Singh Deo said, “such things come to mind when a person is in pain".
"We were seeing him (Gehlot) as the front runner for the post of the party president as a lot of discussions over its possibilities were going on. He served the prominent positions within the party.
"If someone is unable to keep his house in order, then the question will come to mind if, in Rajasthan, Gehlot ji is not able to deliver then what will happen to me (as a Congress leader). What will happen to my family (Congress) at the national level...If those who are supposed to deliver their responsibilities at that level fail, then who will suffer loss? It is the Congress party leader and workers and the party will suffer,” he said.
In July, Singh Deo, locked in a turf war with Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, had resigned from the Panchayat and Rural Development department, hinting that he was sidelined in the government though he continued to hold the other four portfolios.
The development was seen as the fallout of an old political rivalry between Baghel and Singh Deo, who was seeking the chief minister's post under a purported power-sharing agreement. PTI
Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot will go to Delhi this evening. He will further discuss about the opinion of 102 MLAs to the central leadership of the party. CM Gehlot is not resigning today, there are no such talks of it, said Gehlot loyalist PS Khachariyawas, according to news agency ANI.
Hours before Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday reiterated that it was expected that the party’s commitment to “one person, one post” would be followed in its presidential polls, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot told The Indian Express that the principle laid down in the Congress’s Udaipur Declaration was meant for nominated posts and not ones for which elections are held. However, he added that a leader who gets elected “will not be able to justify the Congress presidency” if he or she holds two posts.
He also spoke of what will happen in Rajasthan if he becomes the next Congress president. Excerpts...
Among some Congress workers in Jodhpur, there seems to be a consensus, or perhaps wishful thinking, that while it is confirmed that Ashok Gehlot will contest the Congress presidential elections and even go on to win it, he may still have a few cards up his sleeve –—and retain the Chief Minister post. At best, he will ensure that it is handed over to a “like-minded” person, which means someone other than his former deputy Sachin Pilot.
These days, the topic of discussion at the ‘hathais’ or ‘addas’ around tea stalls, paan shops and temples in the lanes in some of the older localities of Jodhpur are concerning the city’s tallest leader since the time of the Maharajas. Read more.
THE DEFT power play by veteran Ashok Gehlot in full public glare in Rajasthan Sunday, after having announced his decision to contest for the high-stake Congress presidential election, has once again raised questions on the party leadership’s ability to manoeuvre decisions towards desired outcomes.
The Congress leadership – the Gandhi family – were caught off guard by the strategic play by Gehlot who emphatically signalled he would not be a pushover and would like to remain the king in his backyard. This despite the fact that Gehlot had been very clearly indicating he would like the views of the MLAs to be heard on the issue of selecting his successor. Read more.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot will meet the Congress high command in New Delhi on Wednesday amid suspense over whether he will file nomination for the post of party president, sources here said.
Gehlot's visit comes a day after the Congress issued show-cause notices to three of his loyalists - Rajasthan ministers Shanti Dhariwal and Mahesh Joshi, and Dharmendra Rathore - for their "grave indiscipline".
The party's disciplinary committee has asked the three to explain within 10 days why action should not be initiated against them after the observers for Rajasthan - Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken - in their report to party chief Sonia Gandhi charged them with "gross indiscipline".
The action came after 82 MLAs participated in a parallel meeting at Dhariwal's residence in Jaipur laying down conditions to the party and did not attend the official legislature party meeting convened for passing a resolution authorising the Congress chief to appoint a successor to Gehlot, who was to contest the Congress presidential election. (PTI)
The shaky truce between the Rajasthan Congress factions loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot unravelled on Sunday as the state was once again pushed into a political crisis.
This time, MLAs backing Gehlot skipped the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting convened by the party’s high command and tendered their resignations to Assembly Speaker CP Joshi. While the legislators on the CM’s side have been vocal, those in the Pilot camp have not yet publicly commented on the tussle. The Congress on Tuesday issued a show-cause notice to Gehlot loyalists Shanti Dhariwal, Mahesh Joshi and Dharmendra Rathore.
Check out who the main players in the ongoing political drama are.
AMID A full-blown crisis in Rajasthan where a Congress Legislature Party meeting to set in motion the process of finding a successor to Ashok Gehlot as the Chief Minister could not take place, senior Chhattisgarh Congress leader and state Cabinet Minister T S Singh Deo said he was still hopeful of a change of guard in his state although he will be completely subordinate to the decision of the high command.
In an interview to The Indian Express, Singh Deo said, “One always feels that justice should be done.”
A few days after Sonia Gandhi had taken over as Congress president after ousting Sitaram Kesri in 1998, I met former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao for an informal chat. In the course of the conversation, he remarked, “Ab 25-30 saal ke liye is parivar ke haath mein chali gayi yeh party (Now this party will go into the hands of this family for the next 25-30 years)”. Rao turned out to be prophetic. But now, the influence the Nehru-Gandhi family has exercised in Congress affairs for a quarter of a century is waning.
There was a time when chief ministers of states would get the shivers if the high command sent them an emissary like GK Moopanar, ML Fotedar, Buta Singh or Sitaram Kesri. It could be a one-line resignation for the CM to sign, or a diktat for the CLP to authorise the Congress president to choose a CM. Read full Opinion piece by Neerja Chowdhury here
Two days after around 90 MLAs loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot skipped the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meet, the Congress’s chief whip in Rajasthan, Mahesh Joshi, on Tuesday defended what transpired on Sunday evening, adding that he is “ready to face the consequences”.
Also, several MLAs and ministers met CM Gehlot in the evening while Sachin Pilot reached Delhi on Tuesday afternoon. With his nomination for party president’s post under cloud, sources said CM Gehlot told the ministers and MLAs that, “meri toh pehle bhi ichha nahin thi (I was not keen earlier too), rest is up to the party leadership”. Read more
The Congress on Tuesday night issued show cause notices to two Rajasthan ministers Shanti Dhariwal and Mahesh Joshi and MLA Dharmender Rathore for their "grave indiscipline" and asked them to explain within 10 days why action should not be initiated against them.
The party's disciplinary committee sent the notices after Congress observers Mallkarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken submitted their written report to party chief Sonia Gandhi, charging the three with "gross indiscipline".
"This show cause notice is being issued seeking your reply within 10 days as to why disciplinary action not be taken against you as per the provisions of the constitution of the Indian National Congress," the notice by disciplinary panel secretary Tariq Anwar said.
Disciplinary action had been sought against Dhariwal, who had figured prominently in the rebellion by the party legislators, Minister and Congress Chief Whip in the Assembly Joshi and Rathore for holding a parallel meet of MLAs and not allowing the Congress Legislature Party to meet. (PTI)
Just before the Rajasthan Assembly election results were going to be announced in 2018, a video of Jaipur district Congress president Pratap Singh Khachariyawas went viral on social media. In it, he was heard saying that Ashok Gehlot cannot decide who should be the chief minister and it was a decision to be made by the Congress president (then, it was Rahul Gandhi).
At the time, with exit polls predicting a victory for the Congress, Sachin Pilot was thought to be a front-runner for the CM’s chair. Khachariyawas was counted as Pilot’s right-hand man and an indispensable ally at the time, someone who took the lead in countering leaders from the Gehlot camp. Read more
Congress observers recommend disciplinary action against 3 party leaders including ministers and chief whip, according to sources.
The report submitted by the observers points to 'gross indiscipline' on part of Rajasthan MLAs who organised parallel meet, the sources added. However, there was no direct reference to CM Ashok Gehlot in the report seeking disciplinary action against some of his loyalists:(PTI)
Amid an ongoing political crisis in Rajasthan, state minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas alleged on Tuesday that the BJP has again started hatching a conspiracy to topple the Congress government.
On the other hand, another minister, Rajendra Singh Gudha, once again endorsed senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot's name for the chief minister's post. "ED, income tax department, CBI officials are sitting in Rajasthan. BJP's game has started. BJP is again engaged in a conspiracy to topple the Rajasthan government," Khachariyawas told reporters.
He said whatever decision the Congress high-command takes as regards the latest political developments in the state will be acceptable to all. (PTI)
Amid an ongoing political turmoil in the Congress in Rajasthan, the party's chief whip in the state, Mahesh Joshi, on Tuesday said a meeting of the MLAs loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot was not called to mount pressure on the party high-command.
Joshi said this while reacting to All India Congress Committee (AICC) observer Ajay Maken's "indiscipline" remark for holding the meeting. He said the MLAs have expressed their view so that it reaches the high-command.
Joshi also said if the MLAs were not loyal to the Congress, the government would have fallen much earlier. "I am saying again and again that speaking your mind is not mounting pressure. We have not created any pressure on the high-command but have tried to express our views. Whatever decision the leadership takes, we will obey it," he told reporters. (PTI)
Amid the political crisis that has gripped Rajasthan, Congress leader Sachin Pilot arrived in Delhi on Tuesday, ANI reported.
Congress MLAs supporting Sachin Pilot for Chief Minister's post arrived at his residence in Jaipur this afternoon.
There is a reason Ashok Gehlot trusted Shanti Kumar Dhariwal with his 90-plus loyalist MLAs amidst the game of thrones in Rajasthan. On Sunday, the MLAs camped in Dhariwal’s backyard, thus take air out of the official CLP meeting called to determine Gehlot’s successor as Chief Minister.
With his hospitality, the 78-year-old MLA from Kota North once again demonstrated why he is regarded as one of Gehlot’s fiercest supporters, even ready to take on the high command on his behalf.
Congress observer Mallikarjun Kharge and Rajasthan in-charge Ajay Maken kept waiting to hold the CLP meeting – they returned on Monday without any success – as the party MLAs stayed put at Dhariwal’s house, and later submitted their resignation to Speaker C P Joshi. (Read More)
As a political storm rages in Rajasthan over Congress MLAs skipping the legislature party meeting called by the top leadership and resigning en masse, at least three legislators of the ruling party have reiterated that the high command is supreme and criticised their colleagues who organised a parallel meeting at the house of state Parliamentary Affairs Minister and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s confidant Shanti Dhariwal on Sunday.
Leading the clamour of voices against those who attended the meeting at Dhariwal’s home is Osian MLA Divya Maderna who was at Gehlot’s home when the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting was scheduled to be held. Apart from her, former minister and Khetri MLA Jitendra Singh and Ramnarain Meena from Kota district’s Pipalda have also backed the central leadership. Singh was initially among the MLAs who were at the parallel meeting and submitted his resignation to Speaker CP Joshi. But he made a U-turn on Monday.
All three were not among the 18 MLAs loyal to Pilot who had camped in Delhi and Haryana for over a month from July to August 2020 during the former deputy CM’s short-lived rebellion. At the time, they backed Gehlot and stayed in hotels with other Congress legislators supporting the CM. (Read More)
Despite a studied silence, those in the Sachin Pilot camp are hopeful that he will become the next Chief Minister of Rajasthan, with Minister of state Rajendra Gudha saying that if “there are one-to-one talks with MLAs, 90 per cent will take Pilot’s name.”
Especially in light of CM Ashok Gehlot undermining the party high command’s authority, and Sonia Gandhi seeking a written report from observers Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken, the Pilot camp is avoiding making any statements that might jeopardise his chances.
However, sources questioned the actual number of MLAs who submitted their resignations with Speaker C P Joshi on Sunday, pointing out that some were kept in the dark about the developments and resignations were taken from them even though they had not agreed for the same. (Read More)
While the All India Congress Committee (AICC)’s general secretary in charge of Rajasthan Ajay Maken has slammed the Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot camp for having a parallel meeting while skipping the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meet in Jaipur and for stipulating conditions for the CLP resolution, over 90 Gehlot loyalist MLAs remained defiant Monday.
Upset over the Congress high command’s perceived inclination to hand over the chief ministership to Sachin Pilot without consulting them, the MLAs affiliated to Gehlot, the three-time CM who has declared his plan to contest the upcoming Congress presidential election, submitted their resignation to Speaker CP Joshi Sunday night, pushing the party and the state into a crisis.
Despite being attacked by Maken for indulging in “conflicts of interest” by demanding a conditional CLP resolution and for showing “indiscipline” by holding an unofficial meeting parallel to the CLP at Parliamentary affairs minister Shanti Dhariwal’s residence, the Gehlot loyalist MLAs seemed to be unfazed, even as they stuck to their stance. (Read More)
Upset over an open rebellion in Rajasthan, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on Monday sought a written report on it from party observers Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken as the chances of Ashok Gehlot becoming the party chief receded and other names cropped up for the post.
Kharge and Maken, who were sent as observers to Jaipur for a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting, briefed Gandhi in the evening after their return to Delhi and termed the parallel meet held by Gehlot loyalists as "indiscipline".
They are expected to recommend disciplinary action against those behind the move, including minister Shanti Dhariwal and Rajasthan Congress chief whip Mahesh Joshi.
Gehlot loyalists had submitted resignation letters to Assembly Speaker C P Joshi on Sunday evening, in an apparent bid to put pressure on the central leadership to pick someone from the Gehlot camp as CM if the veteran leader is elected the party president. (PTI)
Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s overnight transformation from a staunch Gandhi family loyalist to a near-rebel who cocked a snook at the leadership has put a cloud on his bid for the Congress presidency.
The open defiance of the MLAs close to Gehlot Sunday has left the leadership fuming, but there was no immediate decision to enforce the planned change of guard in Rajasthan, sources said. The high command, sources said, will plan its next move carefully, factoring in the pushback and the support of the MLAs that the Gehlot camp has.
The leadership, however, has taken a very serious view of the parallel meeting held by MLAs close to Gehlot. Sources said show cause notices will be issued to some of the organisers of the parallel meeting. (Read More)
A day after around 90 MLAs loyal to Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot skipped the Congress Legislature Party meeting, submitted their resignation to Speaker CP Joshi, and pushed the state once again into a political crisis, the supporters of the three-time CM remained confident and showed little sign of unease.
“If we are asked for a clarification by the Congress high command in writing or orally, or we are sent any notice, then we will clarify our position. We believe that we haven’t done anything that amounts to indiscipline and there can be no doubt over our dedication towards the party and high command,” Congress chief whip and cabinet minister Mahesh Joshi told reporters on Monday.
He said the Congress MLAs indeed communicated to Ajay Maken and Mallikarjun Kharge that nobody among those who rebelled in 2020 should become the CM. (Read More)
Minister & Gehlot loyalist, Shanti Dhariwal. said: 'It was 100% a conspiracy to remove the CM (Ashok Gehlot) and the general secretary in charge was a part of it. I am not talking about anyone else, no charge on Kharge but only the General Secretary in charge.'
We have briefed Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Rajasthan developments and she has sought a written report: AICC in-charge Ajay Maken.
He further added: It is unfortunate that Rajasthan CLP meeting could not take place. "The meeting of Cong MLAs in Rajasthan was called with CM Ashok Gehlot's consent. The actions of Gehlot loyalists was 'indisciplined." PTI
Congress in-charge for Rajasthan Ajay Maken on Monday accused MLAs in the Ashok Gehlot camp of “indiscipline” and said their demand setting conditions for a party resolution on picking the next chief minister was a “conflict of interest”.
'In the 75 years of Congress history, there has never been a conditional resolution. Resolution is one-line only. Everything is told to the Congress president and then a decision is taken,' Maken told reporters here before leaving for New Delhi.
'Resolution should not have any conflict of interest. Those who are contesting elections and tomorrow become party president, they get to decide on the resolution and this is a conflict of interest. So, it is wrong,' he said without naming Gehlot.
In a related development, the Congress high command has called senior leader Kamal Nath to Delhi who is likely to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi on Monday, sources said.
The visit of Kamal Nath, the Madhya Pradesh Congress chief, to Delhi comes amid a political drama in Rajasthan over leadership change following Ashok Gehlot's announcement that he would contest the Congress president polls.
Kamal Nath is known to have close ties with the Rajasthan chief minister and could be asked to broker a truce, the sources said. PTI
There is a reason Ashok Gehlot trusted Shanti Kumar Dhaliwal with his 90-plus loyalist MLAs amidst the game of thrones in Rajasthan. On Sunday, the MLAs camped in Dhariwal’s backyard, thus take air out of the official CLP meeting called to determine Gehlot’s successor as Chief Minister.
With his hospitality, the 78-year-old MLA from Kota North once again demonstrated why he is regarded as one of Gehlot’s fiercest supporters, even ready to take on the high command on his behalf.
Congress observer Mallikarjun Kharge and Rajasthan in-charge Ajay Maken kept waiting to hold the CLP meeting – they returned on Monday without any success – as the party MLAs stayed put at Dhariwal’s house, and later submitted their resignation to Speaker C P Joshi. Read more.
The Congress’s uncanny ability to foist a crisis upon itself when there is none is in full display in Rajasthan. And it is not the first time and maybe not the last. Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, and to some extent Chhattisgarh, the party perhaps has mastered the art of turning a bad situation worse.
The leadership’s ability to find a balance between competing individual interests (natural in any big party like the Congress), intervene in time to iron out differences before a feud erupts into a full-blown crisis, and take decisions and communicate those to the protagonists in a convincing manner has been put to the test again and again. Read more.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday took a swipe at the Congress over the ongoing political crisis in Rajasthan and said it should first take a 'Congress Jodo Yatra' instead of continuing with its 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'.
The Arvind Kejriwal-led party also ridiculed Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot over the ongoing political drama, saying the two Congress leaders in their "struggle for power" have made "a mockery" of the people's mandate.
"On one hand, the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' of Congress is in progress, and on the other, the MLAs of the party in Rajasthan are running 'Vidhayak Todo Karyakram' (programme to divide legislators)," AAP's election in-charge for Rajasthan Vinay Mishra told PTI.
"Instead of 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', the Congress should first take out 'Congress Jodo Yatra' (a march to bring unity in party)," he added.
In their struggle for power, the Rajasthan chief minister and Sachin Pilot have made a mockery of the mandate that people of the state gave to their party, the AAP leader charged.
"The entire country is laughing at them," he added.
The Congress in Rajasthan plunged into a crisis on Sunday as several MLAs loyal to Gehlot resigned over a possible move to appoint Sachin Pilot as Gehlot's successor, their rebellion erupting just ahead of a Congress Legislature Party meeting.
The political drama continued on Monday with MLAs loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot remaining non-committal on holding a meeting with Congress observers, who left for Delhi to apprise the high command about the developments.
Sachin Pilot, who is seen to be the main contender for the chief minister's post if Gehlot is elected the party's national president, also left for New Delhi to meet the high command.
Congress's chief whip in the Rajasthan Assembly Mahesh Joshi on Monday said the party MLAs have no objection to whoever is made the chief minister, but the final decision of the high-command should be agreeable to them. PTI
The Congress high command has summoned senior leader Kamal Nath to Delhi and he is likely to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi on Monday, sources said.
The visit of Kamal Nath, the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee chief, to Delhi comes amid a political drama in Rajasthan over leadership change following Ashok Gehlot's announcement that he would contest the AICC president polls.
Kamal Nath is known to have close ties with the Rajasthan chief minister and could be asked to broker a truce, sources said.
While legislators loyal to Gehlot have been vocal about their issues, MLAs in the Sachin Pilot camp refrained from commenting.
MLAs loyal to Gehlot have said they have put forth demands before the observers that any decision on the chief ministerial face should be taken after the party president election on October 19 and in consultation with Gehlot.
AICC observers Mallikarjun Kharge and Rajasthan in-charge Ajay Maken, who had waited in vain for all legislators to arrive for the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Sunday, were trying to persuade Gehlot loyalists to meet them one by one in an effort to defuse the political crisis.
However, several MLAs have left for their respective constituencies in view of Navratri festival, party sources said.
The observers are likely to submit a report on the matter to Sonia Gandhi. PTI
Congress leaders Ajay Maken, Kamal Nath, and Mallikarjun Kharge to read Delhi and meet Sonia Gandhi to update her on Rajasthan's political crisis, reports ANI.
AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal arrives at the residence of Congress interim President Sonia Gandhi, in Delhi.
As the Congress again stared at a political crisis in Rajasthan, the BJP – often at the receiving end of charges of staging ‘Operation Lotus’ to topple Opposition governments – did not miss the opportunity to strike back.
Union minister Anurag Thakur said, “I think less entertainment happened in ‘Bharat Jodo’, now it has started in Rajasthan.”
He added: “This fight of Congress shows that they just want to enjoy the power but don’t want to serve the public. Congress has neither direction nor a leader.” Read more.
As over 90 Congress and Independent MLAs supporting Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot tried to arm twist the party high command on Sunday into not taking a decision to elevate Sachin Pilot to the CM post, their destination was the house of Assembly Speaker C P Joshi in Jaipur’s Civil Lines, where the legislators tendered their resignations to Joshi.
A former Union minister and once a rival of Gehlot, Joshi’s political career has come full circle. From being Gehlot’s bête noire who lost the CM race to him by a whisker, to resurrection after the 2018 Assembly elections, to becoming the Assembly Speaker, he is now being considered a potential CM candidate in case Gehlot agrees to relinquish the CM post, as he looks set to become the Congress national president. Read more.
Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot met Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday and after the meet Kharge said, "We have informed the Congress president about what happened yesterday. Everybody has to abide by whatever decision is taken eventually. There should be discipline in the party."
The Congress committee urged Sonia Gandhi to pull Ashok Gehlot out of party president race, reports ANI.
Amid the political tussle in Rajasthan, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday arrived at the Marriott hotel in Jaipur to meet AICC observer Mallikarjun Kharge.
The political drama in Rajasthan over leadership change continued on Monday with MLAs loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot remaining non-committal on holding a meeting with Congress observers, who are likely to return to Delhi to apprise the high command about the developments.
Sachin Pilot, who is seen to be the main contender for the chief minister's post if Gehlot is elected the party's national president post, has left for New Delhi to meet the high command.
Party sources said 82 MLAs loyal to Gehlot, who had submitted resignation letters on Sunday over a possible move to appoint Pilot as the next chief minister, are likely to hold a meeting on Monday to decide their next course of action. The Congress has 108 MLAs in the House of 200. (PTI)
Congress MLA KL Bairwa on Monday said that after such an episode (MLAs submitting resigantion), there's no possibility of Ashok Gehlot becoming Congress president.
He also said, "High command should decide on CM face. After such an episode, Why was another meeting called, when meeting at CM's residence was to be held, isn't it rebbelion?
In an interview with The Indian Express, AICC observer Ajay Maken also said, “Their (Gehlot loyalist MLAs) first condition was even if the resolution authorising Congress chief to take a decision (on next CM) is passed, it should be taken only after Oct 19…I said no.” (Read more)
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday claimed he has the support of party workers from across the country for his bid to fight the AICC president polls.
Amid uncertainty over Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's candidature for the top party post, Tharoor also met Rahul Gandhi on the sidelines of Bharat Jodo Yatra at Pattambi in this north Kerala district. Tharoor said it was a courtesy call as Gandhi was in his home district.
"You will see the support I enjoy when I submit my nomination paper. I will be in the fray if I get support from party workers from the majority of the states. So many people from different parts of the country have requested me to be in the fray," Tharoor told reporters reacting to a query on his candidature for the Congress president's post. Tharoor said he was interested in fighting the poll but the picture will be clearer only after September 30, the last date for submitting nomination papers. (PTI)
On Congress MLAs holding a meeting at Shanti Dhariwal’s residence and skipping the CLP, Ajay Maken said, “Prima facie, this is indiscipline indeed. When an official meeting has been called and someone calls a parallel unofficial meeting, then it is prima facie indiscipline. We will see what action can be taken.”
“We don’t know how many MLAs have submitted their resignations or not,” he said, adding that he and Kharge are headed to Delhi where they will brief Congress president and give a report to her." (Inputs from Hamza Khan)
AICC observer Ajay Maken on Monday stated the three conditions put forth by the Gehlot camp amid the political crisis in Rajasthan:
1. First, a resolution to leave the decision to the Congress president can certainly be passed but the decision should be taken after October 19.
2. Second, when we said that we will talk individually with everyone, they said that they will come in groups.
3. Third, they said that only one among the 102 MLAs who were loyal to Ashok Gehlot should be made the CM. Sachin Pilot or anyone from his group should not be made the CM.
Congress Rajasthan incharge Ajay Maken on Monday attacked the Ashok Gehlot camp for pushing for a conditional resolution, terming it conflict of interest. The AICC observer also said that the act of calling a parallel meeting while a CLP meet was already planned is “prima facie indiscipline.”
Talking to reporters in Jaipur, Maken said that last night, as representatives of the Gehlot camp MLAs, ministers Shanti Dhariwal, Mahesh Joshi and Pratap Singh Khachariyawas met him and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and kept three conditions.
“They kept three conditions before us: first, a resolution to leave the decision to the Congress president can certainly be passed but the decision should be taken after October 19. So we said that if Ashok Gehlot ji moves a resolution that everything is being left to the Congress president…and when he becomes the Congress president after October 19, then he is empowering himself on his own resolution – there can’t be a bigger conflict of interest than this, so (we asked them) you don’t do this,” Maken said.
“But they said you will have to publicly say this and make it a part of the resolution, that the resolution is being passed today but it will be implemented after October 19,” he said. (Inputs from Hamza Khan)
Hoardings of Congress MLA Sachin Pilot with the text "Satyamev Jayate, Naye Yug ki Taiyari" were seen at various places in Jodhpur on Monday.
All India Congress Committee (AICC) observer Ajay Maken on Monday said we asked the MLAs, who sent their resignation to Rajasthan Assembly speaker, to come and talk one-to-one during the CLP meeting on Sunday.
In a statement, he said, 'Mallikarjun Kharge and I came here as AICC observers to hold a meeting in accordance with CM's convenience at the latter's residence. We were continuously telling the MLAs who didn't come to come and talk one-to-one.'
Efforts by senior Congress leaders were underway on Monday to resolve the political crisis in Rajasthan after MLAs loyal to Ashok Gehlot submitted their resignation letters over a possible move to appoint Sachin Pilot as the next chief minister.
Congress observers Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken, who had waited in vain for all legislators to arrive for the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting on Sunday, were trying to persuade Gehlot loyalists to meet them one by one in an effort to defuse the political crisis. The Gehlot loyalists had visited Speaker C P Joshi's home after a long meeting at minister Shanti Dhariwal's residence on Sunday, saying they were resigning as MLAs.
At the chief minister's home, Gehlot, Kharge and Maken waited for all legislators to arrive for the CLP meeting. Pilot and his supporters came but the meeting was a washout. Gehlot loyalists claimed that over 90 MLAs had visited Joshi's home, but the number could not be verified independently. The Congress has 108 MLAs in the House of 200.
There was no word from the Speaker's office on the resignation letters. Ministers Dhariwal, Pratap Singh Khachariyawas and Mahesh Joshi, along with CM Gehlot's advisor Sanyam Lodha met the AICC observers, but the standoff continued. (PTI)
Among some Congress workers in Jodhpur, there seems to be a consensus, or perhaps wishful thinking, that while it is confirmed that Ashok Gehlot will contest the Congress presidential elections and even go on to win it, he may still have a few cards up his sleeve –—and retain the Chief Minister post. At best, he will ensure that it is handed over to a “like-minded” person, which means someone other than his former deputy Sachin Pilot.
These days, the topic of discussion at the ‘hathais’ or ‘addas’ around tea stalls, paan shops and temples in the lanes in some of the older localities of Jodhpur are concerning the city’s tallest leader since the time of the Maharajas. (Read more)
Cross over Congress high command’s ‘unilateral’ decision to opt for a Chief Minister without consulting them, around 90 MLAs loyal to Ashok Gehlot submitted their resignation to Rajasthan Assembly Speaker C P Joshi late on Sunday. Gehlot is expected to file his nomination papers for the party president’s post soon.
As the Congress high command’s inclination to hand over the chief ministership in Rajasthan to Sachin Pilot became apparent, Gehlot loyalist MLAs went into a huddle beginning Sunday afternoon to register their opposition. The MLAs started trickling into the Hospital Road residence of Cabinet Minister Shanti Dhariwal where they agreed on submitting their resignation to Assembly Speaker C P Joshi – signalling their protest against Pilot’s name, instead of going to the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting at the CM’s residence. (Read more)
Amid the fast-paced political developments in Rajasthan, Food Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas on Sunday said democracy runs on numbers and whoever has the support of MLAs will be the state's next chief minister.
He also said that Congress MLAs reaching the assembly speaker's house should not be seen as a rebellion by the party high command. High drama unfolded in Rajasthan as a group of Congress MLAs loyal to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot reached Speaker C P Joshi's residence earlier on Sunday to submit their resignation ahead of a legislature party meeting which was called to decide on his successor.
The development suggested a worsening power struggle between the chief minister and Sachin Pilot, who was tipped to be Gehlot's replacement after he declared his candidature for the Congress president's post. (PTI)