PILOT opens new front against CM Gehlot, demands action against corruption’ during BJP rule in Rajasthan

JAIPUR — Ahead of the assembly elections in Rajasthan, former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot on Sunday opened a new front against CM Ashok Gehlot, announcing a day-long fast to seek action from his government over alleged corruption during the BJP rule in the state.

The development again brings into open the power tussle in the Congress between the Pilot and the Gehlot factions in the state, putting pressure on the central leadership to resolve it before the year-end polls.

“No action was taken (by the Gehlot government) on corruption by the previous Vasundhara Raje government. While in opposition, we had promised that an inquiry would be conducted in the mines scam of Rs 45,000 crore,” Pilot said at a press conference at his residence here, announcing a hunger strike on Tuesday.

“With six-seven months left for the elections, the opponents can spread an illusion that there is some collusion. Therefore, action will have to be taken soon so that the Congress workers feel that there is no difference between our words and actions,” he said.

Pilot said he will observe a day-long fast at Shaheed Smarak on April 11 to press for his demand.

April 11 is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, who belonged to the Saini community, the same community which Gehlot represents.

Gehlot and Pilot have been at loggerheads ever since the Congress formed the government in Rajasthan in December 2018 over the post of chief minister.

In July 2020, Pilot and a section of party MLAs rebelled openly, demanding a leadership change in the state. It led to a one-month-long political crisis that ended after assurance by the party high command to look into the issues raised by Pilot.

The former deputy chief minister said Congress leader Sonia Gandhi had given him the responsibility of the party in the state and he, along with other leaders, had opposed the wrong policies of the then BJP government led by Vasundhara Raje.

He said the Congress as a responsible opposition had raised the issue of corruption because of which the BJP was voted out of power.

Pilot also showed videos of statements of Gehlot in the assembly and outside in which he had levelled corruption allegations against the previous BJP government.

“When we were in opposition, at that time we had said that we will investigate corruption in the BJP government. I wrote a letter to CM Ashok Gehlot on 28 March 2022 and on 2 November 2022, but did not get any answer,” Pilot said.

He said the state government has a “zero tolerance” policy for corruption and to further strengthen it, transparent and effective action should have been taken.

“No action was taken on corruption during the Vasundhara Raje government, where we, in the opposition, had promised that an inquiry would be conducted. Now six-seven months are left for the election, the opponents can spread confusion that there is some collusion,” Pilot said.

He said that he never called for any malicious action but the credibility that the Congress had built as the opposition party has to be maintained.

“Ashok Gehlot and I had made allegations together, how will we know until there is a fair investigation. If it comes out in the investigation that no one was guilty, then we will accept that Gehlot ji and I were liars. But until a case is registered, how will people believe that the allegations made by us are true or false,” Pilot said.

He said that it was one of the suggestions he had given to the party high command that action should be taken over allegations of corruption and scams that we had made while in the opposition.

Pilot has often, though in a subtle manner, kept on demanding from the party leadership to take action on issues raised by him.

On Sunday, the former PCC chief brought up an old issue, which was raised by him and other leaders of the party including Gehlot when the Congress was in opposition from 2013 to 2018 to embarrass the present state government.

Following the revolt by Pilot and 18 other MLAs in 2020, Gehlot had used terms like “Gaddar”, “Nakara”, “Nikamma” for his former deputy and had accused him of being involved with the BJP leaders in a conspiracy to topple the Congress government.

A few days before Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra entered Rajasthan from Madhya Pradesh, Gehlot had again targeted Pilot, calling him “Gaddar” again, in an interview to a news channel in November last year.

However, Pilot had responded to it gently, saying it was not his (Pilot’s) upbringing to use such language.

Pilot’s demand to order a probe and take action on the mining scam during the previous BJP government and other corruption issues was supported by Cabinet minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas.

Khachariyawas was the Jaipur Congress president when Pilot was the PCC chief and used to be at the forefront with him in raising the corruption issue. He was in the Pilot camp but during Pilot’s revolt against Gehlot in 2020, Khachariyawas switched to the Gehlot camp.

He said whatever Pilot has pointed out was right, and action against corruption should be taken.

“Sachin Pilot is an asset for the party and Rahul Gandhi has said this… I would also speak to the chief minister and say that we should take action,” Khachariyawas said.

While some leaders say that Pilot has raised the right demand, others say that his act would inflict great harm to the party in the upcoming election, particularly when the party is working with a strategy to repeat the government in the state.

Another Congress leader said Pilot’s announcement was also a “kind of revolt” against Gehlot and this would certainly harm the party.

“At a time when the Congress government is leaving no stone unturned to retain power in the upcoming elections, Pilot’s announcement to sit on ‘Anshan’ will definitely send a wrong message among the masses. This should be avoided,” the Congress leader said.

On the other hand, Pilot supporters said issues raised by the leader before the party high command have not been addressed so far, which has disappointed them.

They said that the party workers wanted Pilot to be the chief minister but no decision was taken by the high command.

“Pilot had a major contribution in bringing Congress to power in 2018. As the PCC chief, he worked hard to revive the party and because of him, the party got a majority of seats in eastern Rajasthan but he was not given the rightful share in the government,” a Pilot supporter said.

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