'Congress Must Decide Soon': Pilot Questions Delay In Action On Gehlot Loyalists Who Defied Sonia Gandhi

Senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot has flagged his concerns over the party leadership's delay in taking action against those who defied then-president Sonia Gandhi last year.

Congress leader Sachin Pilot (R) and Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot (L) have been locked in an apparent power tussle since last year.

The political situation in Rajasthan remains fluid and complex, with tensions simmering beneath the surface. Sachin Pilot, a senior Congress leader, has raised concerns over the party leadership's "inordinate delay" in taking action against those who defied then-president Sonia Gandhi last year. He also said that a decision on the party's affairs in Rajasthan must be taken soon if the trend of alternate governments is to be bucked, reported news agency PTI.

Pilot's comments referred to the show cause notices that were issued over four months ago to three loyalists of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot for holding a parallel gathering to the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting. The notices were issued for prima facie indiscipline, but so far, there has been no decision or action taken by the All India Congress Committee (AICC). Pilot has urged the AICC disciplinary committee under AK Antony, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, and the party leadership to explain why there has been such a long delay in a decision on the matter.

The legislative party meeting was called on September 25, 2022, by the Chief Minister in Jaipur, but it did not take place. The central observers Ajay Maken and Kharge were present, but the meeting was not allowed to take place. The people who were responsible for not having that meeting and having a parallel gathering were served notices of prima facie indiscipline.

Pilot has also referred to the affidavit filed in the Rajasthan High Court by the Speaker, which stated that there were 81 resignations received, with a few given to him personally. According to the affidavit, some of the resignations were photocopies, and the rest were not accepted because they were not given "out of their free will." That was the reason why the Speaker rejected those resignations.

Pilot has urged the party to investigate whether the resignations were given under pressure, allurement, or threat, as they were not given under free will. He has stated that the party needs to take decisions about the Congress party in Rajasthan as elections are approaching at the end of the year.

Pilot emphasized that this is essential if the Congress party is to break the cycle of alternate governments of the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state, which has been happening for the last 25 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is campaigning aggressively, and the Congress party needs to hit the ground running and galvanize workers so that they are battle-ready.

He pointed out that it was under the direction of then-Congress president Sonia Gandhi that the CLP meeting was called, so the non-compliance of the party directive was open defiance. It does not matter if one is big or small; discipline and the party line are the same for everyone.

Pilot urged the party leadership to take a call on the matter and for Antony, Kharge, and the party leadership to look into it. At that time in September, Ajay Maken had failed to convene a meeting of MLAs to pass a one-line resolution to authorize the Congress president to appoint a new leader in Rajasthan. Gehlot apologized publicly later for failing to get the resolution passed and opted out of the race for the Congress president after meeting then-party chief Sonia Gandhi.

The party had issued show cause notices to MLAs Dharmendra Rathore, Shanti Dhariwal, and Mahesh Joshi, who is the chief whip of the party in the assembly. The party has not taken any action on the notices though the MLAs have responded to the charges against them.

Soon after that, Maken resigned in November and Randhawa was appointed the leader in charge of Rajasthan. Maken had written a letter to party president Kharge on November 8, asking for his replacement in light of the events of September 25.

In December, a dispute arose when Gehlot referred to Pilot as a 'gaddar' (traitor) and claimed that he could not replace him. This drew a strong reaction from Pilot, who felt that Gehlot's use of such language was unbecoming of his stature. The rift between Gehlot and Pilot had escalated just before the Bharat Jodo Yatra entered the desert state. However, the situation was defused when K C Venugopal visited the state, and both leaders posed together with the AICC general secretary.

In January, the Rajasthan High Court was informed that the 81 MLAs who had submitted resignation letters to the assembly speaker on September 25 had withdrawn them. Nonetheless, the power struggle between Gehlot and Pilot resumed shortly after the Bharat Jodo Yatra ended, with Pilot announcing a series of public events that were viewed by many as a display of strength and a reminder to the high command that his grievances remained unaddressed.

At his rallies, Pilot criticized the Gehlot government for issues such as repeated paper leaks, political appointments of retired bureaucrats, and the side-lining of party workers.