The government must act on the charges against Vasundhara Raje, said Sachin Pilot. (File)
In the escalating tension between the Congress’s two top leaders in Rajasthan, Sachin Pilot today raised questions about Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s government not acting on corruption charges against the BJP’s Vasundhara Raje.
“The government must act on the charges against Vasundhara Raje. There is still one year to go,” Sachin Pilot said, speaking at the Jaipur Lit Fest.
“When we were in the opposition, we raised issues of corruption against the BJP government and its Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. But in four years, we did not manage to act against her. It is time we acted. There is still one year to go,” Mr Pilot said.
The remarks come after Ashok Gehlot appeared to refer to him as virus in a video.
“I have resumed meetings…earlier there was corona …a big corona also entered our party,” Mr Gehlot was heard telling people at a pre-budget meeting.
Though he didn’t take names, it is widely believed he was targeting his former deputy, whom he has previously called “gaddar (traitor)” and “nikamma (worthless)”.
The increasing rancor suggests a festering crisis for the Congress ahead of an election in Rajasthan, one of the few states it rules.
Mr Pilot launched a solo outreach for the Rajasthan polls on January 20, saying he wanted to capitalise on the goodwill generated by Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. As he takes on his own Chief Minister on subjects like the exam question paper leak, many in the Congress fear fresh, unwanted spotlight on the unresolved leadership tussle in Rajasthan.
Mr Pilot’s campaign comes nearly two months after Mr Gehlot, in an explosive interview to NDTV, called his former deputy a “gaddar (traitor)” and said he would not be chief minister.
“A gaddar (traitor) cannot be Chief Minister. The High Command cannot make Sachin Pilot the Chief Minister… a man who doesn’t have 10 MLAs. Who revolted. He betrayed the party, (he) is a traitor,” Mr Gehlot had said.
The Gehlot-Pilot standoff has seen two failed shows of defiance. At no point has Mr Pilot been able to produce more than 20 MLAs on his side.
The feud first surfaced when both competed for the Chief Minister’s job after the Congress’s Rajasthan victory in 2018. Though Mr Pilot agreed to play second fiddle to veteran Ashok Gehlot, he revolted two years later, demanding a better deal.
But the rebellion fizzled out as Mr Pilot could not win over more than 20 MLAs, with 100-plus MLAs choosing to back Mr Gehlot.
In September, when Mr Gehlot was being considered by the Congress for the top post, nearly 100 MLAs supporting him revolted over reports that Mr Pilot would replace him as Rajasthan Chief Minister.
Mr Gehlot stayed in Rajasthan and the Congress opted for Mallikarjun Kharge as Sonia Gandhi’s successor.
