Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Wednesday once again made it clear (indirectly, though) that all is not well between him and Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot and said he expects the party’s new president Mallikarjun Kharge will take action against the Congress MLAs in the state who revolted against the party.
“The Congress is an old party with the same rules for everyone, no matter how senior. I am sure new president Mallikarjun Kharge will take action,” Pilot told reporters in Jaipur, adding that party observer KC Venugopal had said a decision on “the Rajasthan situation” will be taken soon too.
“Ajay Maken and Kharge (observers) have taken the matter seriously and assessing it, the AICC observed that it’s a case of indiscipline. The party had sent notices to three and it came to know that they have already responded. But since the Congress is an old party with the same rules for everyone, action will be taken against them soon,” the former Rajasthan deputy CM said.
He, however, said Gehlot had apologised to the then party chief Sonia Gandhi for the defiance his loyalists showed.
In September, several MLAs loyal to Gehlot, who was seen as the frontrunner for the post of the Congress national president, had submitted resignation letters over a possible move to appoint Pilot as the next chief minister. Gehlot later announced that he would not contest the Congress presidential polls as he took moral responsibility for the political crisis in his state.
Pilot took a dig at the chief minister over praise by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“It’s interesting that the PM praised (CM) yesterday. It mustn’t be taken lightly. Because the PM similarly praised Gulam Nabi Azad in the Parliament and we all saw what happened,” he said.
On Tuesday, Gehlot said Modi commands respect globally because he leads a country that has deep roots in democracy. Speaking at a public function at Mangarh Dham in Rajasthan’s Banswara, Gehlot said India has scripted history in the world as democracy in alive in the country even after more than 70 years since it achieved independence.
“When Modi goes abroad, he gets so much respect. He gets the respect because he is the prime minister of the country of Gandhi, where the roots of democracy run deep and where, even after more than 70 years of independence, democracy is alive,” he said.