RAJASTHAN: FESTERING FEUD
The Congress high command thinks the best way to deal with the Pilot-Gehlot rivalry is to ignore it
Sachin Pilot’s hopes of taking over the top post seem to have hit a brick wall in the state. The Rajasthan deputy chief minister had two chances, one after the Congress party won the assembly election last December and then, when Ashok Gehlot, the current chief minister, failed to bring in a single seat for the party in the May general election. But it wasn’t to be. The situation now is that the high command looks the other way when supporters of both leaders run each other down. The uncertainty over Rahul Gandhi’s future as party president has kept the situation from blowing up, though, as ministers and MLAs try to keep both factions in good humour.
Pilot has to be on his toes as rivals have been castigating the leader for his ‘aloofness’ and ‘lack of administrative skills’ (he’s in charge of the rural development, panchayati raj and PWD ministries). The bureaucracy too has been cautious in reaching out to him, fearing it might annoy Gehlot. Realising the gravity of the situation, Pilot has been travelling to meet constituents and review the progress of various schemes of his ministries. “We have to tell people that this Congress government is considerably different in its approach towards people,” Pilot told india today. He visited Tonk in early June and then Udaipur, Jalore, Pali and Sirohi, ending with a trip to Dausa on the death anniversary of his father Rajesh Pilot on June 11. Pilot, who is also Pradesh Congress Committee president, had half of Gehlot’s cabinet and MLAs attending the function, which goes to show that the party has accepted him as No. 2 and a possible alternative to Gehlot. Meena leaders, rising above caste rivalry, have also extended support to Pilot of late.
Gehlot and Pilot have their work cut out as byelections for two assembly seats (Nagaur and Churu) and those for the panchayat and municipalities are coming up. Meanwhile, fresh from the Lok Sabha election sweep, a jubilant BJP, at its working committee meeting in Jaipur on June 16, has pledged to repeat its performance.