Sachin Pilot with Ashok Gehlot and Rahul Gandhi. (File photo)
Rajasthan Government crisis Live Updates: As the Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot-led Rajasthan Congress camp on Monday night released a video showing at least 16 MLAs sitting together. Though Pilot himself cannot be seen in the video, the 10-second video shows the MLAs sitting together in a close circle in an apparent show of strength. Some of the MLAs seen in the video are Indraraj Gurjar, Mukesh Bhakar, Harish Meena. Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh tweeted the video with the caption “Family”.
The Congress, meanwhile, has scheduled another legislative party meeting at 10 am today and invited Pilot and all the MLAs to attend. Sources said former president Rahul Gandhi, AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and party veterans Ahmed Patel, P Chidambaram and K C Venugopal got in touch with Pilot who skipped a meeting of the Congress Legislature Party in Jaipur and remained closeted with a little over a dozen MLAs close to him at a five-star hotel in Manesar.
On Monday, the Rajasthan Congress Legislature Party passed a resolution to extend their support to the Ashok Gehlot-led government, which Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot claimed, has been reduced to a minority. Pilot stood his ground. Sources close to him said he has not met any Congress leader or emissary and contested the party’s official claim that Gehlot has the support of 109 MLAs. The Congress message, however, was clear — the high command will back Gehlot since a majority of the MLAs are with him; the leadership holds no grudge against Pilot despite his revolt, will listen to his grievances and find “working solutions,” but not buckle under pressure.
Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot claimed that the Congress government in the state has been reduced to a minority.
The Gehlot camp claimed support of 106 MLAs — five more than the majority mark of 101 — and said there was no threat to the government. After the meeting, the MLAs were taken to Hotel Fairmont which was searched earlier in the day by a central agency.
Rajasthan Congress in-charge Avinash Pande said the party is giving a second chance to Pilot and hoped that he and the other MLAs will attend the meeting today
As Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot tries to stave off a political crisis to save his government following a showdown Sunday by Deputy CM Sachin Pilot, the Income-Tax department carried out search and survey operations in 43 premises in Jaipur, Kota, Mumbai and Delhi of businesspersons and associates close to him.
In Mumbai, the tax department searched nine offices of two firms — Mayank Sharma Enterprises and Om Kothari Group, sources in the I-T department said. The I-T department also carried search and survey operations at the residence and properties of state Congress Vice President Rajiv Arora, founder and owner of Amrapali Jewels, and Dharmendra Rathore, also an AICC member, both said to be close aides of Ashok Gehlot.
At least 18 party MLAs, including Cabinet Ministers Vishvendra Singh and Ramesh Chand Meena, are learnt to have skipped the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting at Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s residence on Monday, despite the party whip. A third minister, Master Bhanwarlal Meghwal, who holds the Social Justice and Empowerment and Disaster Management and Relief portfolios, was also absent. But party leaders cited his ill-health — Meghwal suffered a paralytic attack recently.
While Pilot belongs to the Gujjar community, which accounts for about 6 per cent of the population in the state, the MLAs who skipped the CLP meeting included, besides Gujjars, those from the Jat, Rajput and Meena communities.
In a show of strength, Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot-led Rajasthan Congress camp on Monday released a video showing at least 16 MLAs sitting together. Though Pilot himself cannot be seen in the video, the 10-second video shows the MLAs sitting together in a close circle in an undisclosed location. Some of the MLAs seen in the video are Indraraj Gurjar, Mukesh Bhakar, Harish Meena. Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh tweeted the video with the caption “Family”.
This comes hours after the Congress held a legislature party meeting. Party leaders said 106 of 122 MLAs attended, a claim contested by the Pilot camp. The video was shared late at night on Pilot's official WhatsApp group.
AS RAJASTHAN Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot tries to stave off a political crisis to save his government following a showdown Sunday by Deputy CM Sachin Pilot, the Income-Tax department carried out search and survey operations in 43 premises in Jaipur, Kota, Mumbai and Delhi of businesspersons and associates close to him.
In Mumbai, the tax department searched nine offices of two firms — Mayank Sharma Enterprises and Om Kothari Group, sources in the I-T department said.Mayank Sharma Enterprises (MSE) belongs to the family of Ratan Kant Sharma, who had in March 2011 acquired 50 per cent shares in Sunlight Car Rentals Private Ltd, a company floated by Vaibhav Gehlot, the son of Ashok Gehlot. He remained a shareholder till March 31, 2016 in Sunlight Car Rentals. The price at which Sharma bought 50 per cent shares is not provided in the RoC filings of Sunlight Car Rentals. Read more
Sachin Pilot camp shares a video of rebel MLAs supporting him at a hotel in NCR.
Moving to snuff out a rebellion led by rival and Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot staged a show of strength Monday and got the party to pass a resolution which, apart from targeting the BJP for attempting to destabilise his government, called for “strict disciplinary action” against Congress members involved in “anti-government or anti-party activities”. As Pilot and his loyalists skipped the CLP meeting, the Gehlot camp claimed support of 106 MLAs — five more than the majority mark of 101 — and said there was no threat to the government. After the meeting, the MLAs were taken to Hotel Fairmont which was searched earlier in the day by a central agency. Read more here
Hours after Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's show of strength at the CLP meet in Jaipur, sources close to his deputy Sachin Pilot on Monday countered the government's claim of having the numbers. They told PTI that majority is proven in the Assembly, not at the CM's house. They also ruled out the any possibility of Pilot joining hands with the BJP. Pilot, who is also the president of the Congress' Rajasthan unit, had skipped the meeting of the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) at the CM House, where the MLAs expressed support for the chief minister.
Surjewala said, "They're requested to come & discuss how to strengthen Rajasthan & serve the 8 crore people together. If there are some differences with someone then they should say that that with an open mind. Sonia Gandhi & Rahul Gandhi are ready to listen to everyone&find solution."
As political crisis in Rajasthan deepen, Congress has scheduled another legislative party meet at 10 am Tuesday and invited Sachin Pilot and all the MLAs to attend. “To discuss political situation another Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meet will be held here at 10 am tomorrow. We request Sachin Pilot & all MLAs to come, we’ll also give them in writing. We’ve requested them to come & discuss the situation,” said Congress leader Randeep Surjewala in his second press conference on Monday.
Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) issues letter to its two MLAs to abstain in the event of a trust vote in the assembly. These two MLAs had earlier supported the Ashok Gehlot led government in Rajasthan.
Mukesh Bhakar, A leader of Tajasthan Youth Congress took a dig at the party saying loyalty in Congress means Ashok Gehlot's slavery and this is not acceptable. Taking to Twitter, he wrote in Hindi: "It is necessary to look alive if alive. It is necessary to hit the principles. Loyalty in Congress means Ashoka Gehlot's slavery. That is not acceptable to us."
Amid the ongoing political rumblings in Rajasthan, the state BJP president Satish Poonia Monday said that young leaders have always been "neglected and side-lined" in the Congress. He asserted that the Congress government in the state should go as it has lost the confidence of people, the BJP said.
Congress MLAs taken to Hotel Fairmont in Jaipur after the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting at Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's residence earlier today. Visuals of MLAs Madan Prajapat, Amit Chachan, Ganesh Ghogra and others, inside the hotel.
Although the resolution adopted at the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting urged "strong disciplinary action" against any party office-bearer or CLP member who is operative in weakening the government or the party, it stopped short of naming Pilot.
Rajasthan Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh Monday posted a collage of photos on his Twitter handle, showing Deputy CM Sachin Pilot's struggle. The photos appear to have been taken during various protests. Singh is considered close to Pilot and had also skipped the CLP meet at CM Ashok Gehlot's residence in Jaipur on Monday. Although the photos have no caption, prior to this tweet, he had tweeted saying whatever decision he takes would be based on the interest of those who elected him.
The Ashok Gehlot vs Sachin Pilot tussle in Rajasthan has become some sort of a cliche in Congress infighting. But the latest showdown between the Chief Minister and his Number two is qualitatively different.
Both the timing and the framing are significant. It comes when the pandemic and the lockdown have forced parties to put most political activity on temporary snooze. And, unlike previous times, it doesn’t have an external trigger.
Indeed, it has more to do with the Congress’s internal dynamics. That explains why this time many Congress leaders feel it is time the leadership – read Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi – not kick this can down the road as they have been doing since the party won Jaipur in December 2018. At least two MPs even articulated their concerns in public. Read more here
Watch video | Rajasthan Political Crisis: Ashok Gehlot gets majority, setback for Sachin Pilot
Congress MLAs being taken to Hotel Fairmont in Jaipur.