Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Apr 11: Defying the party high command’s warning, the Rajasthan Congress leader Sachin Pilot sat on a protest fast in Jaipur on Tuesday against his own party government for its inaction to probe alleged corrupt practices by the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in the state.
The Congress high command as in the last five years, decided to stand with the chief minister Ashok Gehlot and issued a warning to Pilot on Monday night that the proposed fast would be construed as an anti-party activity. Pilot, however, decided to ignore the warning though in keeping with the party’s advice, refrained from attacking the Gehlot government at the end of the fast.
With a backdrop devoid of the Congress name or symbol, Sachin Pilot sat at the “Shaheed Smarak Sthal” surrounded by supporters but without any of the party MLAs, for a one-day fast largely aimed at his party rival Ashok Gehlot, whom he accuses of not acting on allegations against the BJP’s Vasundhara Raje.
Moments after he began his protest, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot posted a video in which he listed his government’s welfare policies, attempting to counter Pilot’s “corruption crusade” narrative with his own about a “pro-poor, common man’s Chief Minister.” “Rajasthan will be No. 1 by 2029,” Gehlot said, declaring price rise as an election issue.
Pilot sat on the fast from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. A banner put up at the venue of Pilot’s agitation read — “Vasundhara Sarkar Me Hue Bhrastachar ke Viruddh Anshan”. The song “Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye” was also played in the background. No incumbent MLA of the ruling party went to the venue of the fast as they were asked by Pilot not to come, but several other leaders and his supporters, including former MLAs Santosh Saharan and Ramnarayan Gurjar, were present. Before arriving at the Shaheed Smarak, Pilot went to the 22 Godown Circle from his residence and offered tributes to Phule at his statue.
The public squabbling between its two top leaders in Rajasthan has hugely embarrassed the Congress as it prepares for elections in one of the only three states it rules. The party has not formally responded to Pilot’s defiance. Last evening, it had strongly warned Pilot against the fast.
“Sachin Pilot’s day-long fast on Tuesday is against the party interests and is anti-party activity. If there is any issue with his own government, it can be discussed in the party forums instead of in the media and public,” the Congress’s Rajasthan in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said in a statement on Monday, in an effort to deescalate the friction between Pilot, who has been eyeing the Chief Minister’s post for a long time, Gehlot, the current Chief Minister.
“I have been an AICC in-charge for the last five months and Pilot ji has never discussed this issue with me. I am in touch with him and I still appeal for calm dialogue since he is an indisputable asset to the Congress party,” Randhawa said.
Mr Pilot’s latest confrontation with Ashok Gehlot is seen as his attempt to put pressure on the Congress leadership to settle the issue of who will be the key face of the party in Rajasthan in the state Assembly elections due in November, this year.
“No action was taken (by the Gehlot government) on corruption by the previous Vasundhara Raje government. While in the opposition, we promised an inquiry into the mines scam of ₹ 45,000 crore,” Pilot had told reporters on Sunday while announcing the fast. He said he wrote two letters last year to Gehlot detailing the issue, but got no response, after which he decided to take a stronger measure now.
At the end of his day-long fast, Pilot told reporters that his movement against graft would continue. “We had assured people that effective action will be taken against corruption by the former BJP government in the state. I wanted the Congress government to take action against the corruption by the former BJP government,” he said. “This movement against corruption will continue,” Pilot added.
The tussle between Gehlot and Pilot began during the formation of the government in December 2018 over the chief minister’s post. The Congress high-command appointed Gehlot to the top post for a third time and Pilot was made his deputy with an assurance that he would take over after two and half years but that never happened.
In July 2020, Pilot and a section of Congress MLAs rebelled openly against Gehlot, demanding a change of leadership in the State. It led to a month-long political crisis that ended after the party high-command’s assurance to look into the issues raised by Pilot but instead Pilot ended losing both his deputy chief ministership and the state party presidentship.
Following the revolt by Mr. Pilot and 18 other MLAs, Gehlot used terms such as “ gaddar” (traitor), “ nakara” (failure) and “ nikamma” (worthless) for his former deputy and accused him of being involved with BJP leaders in a conspiracy to topple the Congress Government in the State. Pilot has been demanding that the party leadership take action on the issues raised by him.
In September last year, a Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting was convened at the chief minister’ residence to pass a one-line resolution authorising the party high-command to take a decision on a change in the State leadership as Gehlot was in the race for the party president’s post. But Gehlot engineered a rebellion within the Congress legislature party and managed to stall the high command’s move to replace him with Pilot.