Gehlot sends strong signals

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, in the most uncharacteristic manner, launched a scathing attack on his bête noire Sachin Pilot, describing him as “a traitor” and “someone who shall never be made the CM of the state”. The seasoned and astute politician this time was completely candid and spoke his mind, instead of very measured and well thought through responses he is known for.
Gehlot had not reacted when Pilot first and later Ajay Maken, the party in-charge of Rajasthan had criticized him repeatedly. This time around, he decided to send a clear message to the Congress leadership in general and his supporters in particular that he was firmly in the saddle and therefore Pilot should stop nursing ambitions of getting elevated.
In an interview to an English news channel, Gehlot said that how could anyone who had colluded with the BJP to topple the Congress government in 2020 be considered for the top position. “He hardly has ten MPs with him” but has become a claimant.
However, many in the party questioned the timing of Gehlot’s outbursts, when, in a few days, Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra will enter Rajasthan from Madhya Pradesh. They also claimed that Gehlot was egging on a section of Gurjars, Pilot’s community, to issue statements that they would not allow the Yatra to pass through their regions if the Congress high command did not keep its promise of making Pilot the CM.
Gehlot, who appeared to be in a combative mood, made it explicitly clear that he was not going to go the Amarinder Singh way, and attempts to draw similarities between the situations in Rajasthan and Punjab were misplaced. If the high command decides to change him, he would not revolt against the party like the Captain did. Instead, he would put all his weight behind the Congress to help it return to power next year.
Gehlot, who apparently enjoys the support of around 100 MLAs, obviously does not share the view of some, that if the Central leadership was to make someone else as the CM, the MLAs would support him. He also claimed that at no stage was Pilot promised the position he was seeking and any clarification on this matter could be taken from Rahul Gandhi.
The mention of Rahul Gandhi by the seasoned player who has risen in the party from his NSUI days, could be because the former Congress president does not favour any change at this juncture. There is also every possibility that the Chief Minister may have sounded the Central leadership about his intentions of giving an interview and obtained a clearance from the topmost levels. Had this not been the case, the Congress would have reacted differently and the performa statement by Jairam Ramesh, the chief spokesman, that differences between the two leaders would be resolved shortly was considered too mild by many Pilot supporters.
The tension in the state has been building up and though K.C. Venugopal had some weeks ago stated that the high command would take a final decision on Rajasthan, it is evident that the top leaders want status quo to continue and do not wish to rock the boat.
Pilot’s advocacy is being done more by some of his supporters in the media, who occasionally are fed source-based information which makes headlines. At the party level, there was never any attempt to dislodge a stable government. The first reports that Pilot would succeed Gehlot when he would be elevated as the Congress president (which did not happen) were all source based and not authenticated on record by any senior leader.
Many in the party held Ajay Maken responsible for the misinformation and also claimed that the former general secretary, after failing to get a successor appointed in the state, tried to pit the Chief Minister against Sonia Gandhi.
Gehlot is too experienced to ever challenge the Gandhis and that was the reason he rushed to Delhi to clarify his position and publicly expressed his regret for not getting the one-line resolution passed authorizing Sonia to appoint someone of her choice.
Gehlot did not become the Congress president after that but this is precisely what he may have wanted; bat on his own turf where he was comfortable in dealing with the most difficult situations.
Significantly, Gehlot in the interview made it abundantly clear that the MLAs had not rebelled at any stage but had revolted because an attempt was being made to foist Pilot by some party functionaries. He claimed that Pilot was unacceptable to the MLAs who had to bear the consequences of his action while he was trying to make Operation Lotus successful. He said that he had evidence how some of the MLAs who went with Pilot received crores of rupees from the BJP. How can anyone who works against the interest of the party be ever made the Chief Minister?
The interview has evidently been well received by his followers and the majority of MLAs are relieved that they would not have to deal with a new person, who would damage their political future in the coming days. Gehlot, who is also overall in-charge of the Congress campaign in the Gujarat Assembly elections, would make the Rahul yatra a success in his own state.
The three MLAs, who were served show cause notice by the Central leadership, have been made coordinators of the Yatra and this could not have been done without taking requisite clearances. Between us.