New Delhi: A day after Sachin Pilot, defied party leadership and sat on a day-long fast in Jaipur demanding action against corruption allegations against the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in the state, the former Deputy Chief Minister of Rajasthan reached Delhi on Wednesday.
The daylong fast by Sachin Pilot has again brought the party’s internal squabble between Pilot and Ghelot to the fore. Experts believe that Pilot’s fasting on Tuesday was an effort to press the Ashok Gehlot government for action against corruption.
Though it drew a stern warning from the Congress, who said any such action on his part would amount to anti-party activity but a defiant Pilot not only continued on with fasting but reached Delhi to meet the High Command is indicative enough that the party was also trying to go soft on Pilot. Interestingly enough, though the party high command didn’t confirm his meeting with any senior leaders of the party, they have not ruled out the possibility either.
With the backdrop devoid of the Congress name or symbol, Pilot’s fast was aimed at his party rival, whom he accuses of not acting on the allegations against the BJP’s Vasundhara Raje. “We had assured people that effective action will be taken against corruption by the former BJP government. I wanted the Congress government to take action but it has not happened in over four years,” Pilot said. “This struggle against corruption will continue,” he added.
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Speaking to reporters after his fast, Pilot said that the allegations of corruption are not new and are already in the public domain. He said that he wrote twice demanding action, but there was no response. “So action should be taken... So that people don't think that there is a difference between what we promise and what we do,” he added. Pilot also told reporters that Rahul Gandhi, the Congress, and other opposition parties have united over corruption and financial irregularities, and claimed that his fast will speed up this movement.
However, moments after Pilot began his protest, Gehlot posted a video in which he listed his government's welfare policies, attempting to project himself as a “pro-poor, common man's Chief Minister”. “Rajasthan will be No. 1 by 2029,” Gehlot said, declaring price rise as an election issue.
While the Congress leadership has deliberately avoided a confrontation by taking any action against Sachin Pilot, it appears to have thrown its weight behind Gehlot, at least for now. “Sachin Pilot's day-long fast on Tuesday is against the party interests and is anti-party activity. If there is any issue with his own government, it can be discussed in the party forums instead of in the media and public,” the Congress's Rajasthan in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa had said in a statement on Monday.
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Pilot’s latest confrontation with Ashok Gehlot is seen as his attempt to put pressure on the Congress leadership to settle the issue of who will be the key face of the party in Rajasthan. However, the Congress has maintained that the issue can be discussed in party forums instead of in the media and public. Randhawa, who has been the AICC in-charge for the last five months, said that Pilot had never discussed this issue with him. However, he added that he is in touch with Pilot and still appeals for calm dialogue since he is an asset to the Congress party.
