Jaipur: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot Tuesday sought to justify the Congress’ decision to sack rebel Sachin Pilot as deputy chief minister and president of the party’s state unit.
The decision, which came two days after former Union minister Pilot mounted an open rebellion against the Gehlot government, was a “sad” one that the party felt “compelled” to take, he said in a media address.
He cited five reasons for the decision.
‘A BJP bid to unseat Congress govt’
Gehlot alleged that a horse-trading conspiracy by the BJP was being hatched over the past six months to topple his government, adding that some of his Congress colleagues had “come under their trap”. “But BJP’s attempt to destabilise government like in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh could not be fulfilled. For the first time, there is a government in the country that destabilises elected governments and topples them,” he told reporters.
‘MLAs rejected olive branch’
Gehlot said all the rebel MLAs were given the opportunity to air their grievances at two meetings of the Congress Legislative Party, held Monday and Tuesday in the presence of central party observers, but they didn’t attend. He said some of the “rebel MLAs held captive” at a hotel in Manesar wanted to join the meeting, but were unable to because Haryana has a BJP government in office.
‘People deserve good governance’
The resort where the rebel MLAs are staying was arranged by the BJP, Gehlot said. “What option does the government have in such a situation? We have promised good governance, we should fulfil that rather than indulging in internal fights,” he added. “It is sad to see someone trying to topple the government at a time when we are in the middle of a deadly pandemic,” Gehlot said.
‘Pilot made irresponsible statements’
Gehlot said Pilot had been making irresponsible statements in public. “Despite the fact that his behaviour in the past six months was not good, I did not complain about it. Every day, he used to tweet and give out statements. If someone is a chief minister, his duty is to understand public sentiment, ensure the government stays together. I have colleagues in the cabinet and no one is the boss… The MLAs, irrespective of the group they belong to, I have worked with all of them and given them their due.”
We are deeply grateful to our readers & viewers for their time, trust and subscriptions.
Quality journalism is expensive and needs readers to pay for it. Your support will define our work and ThePrint’s future.
‘They are blackmailing us’
No one is happy with the situation, including the high-command, but the rebel MLAs refused to attend the meeting despite being given several chances, Gehlot said. “We tried everything, but when we saw they have made a deal with the BJP and then there were talks of floating a new party after the MLAs didn’t agree. Breaking a party is illegal under law, they are blackmailing (us). They want a floor test in the assembly when we have complete majority,” Gehlot added.
Reshuffle likely Thursday
The Rajasthan chief minister has now called a meeting of his cabinet to discuss a reshuffle as two Pilot loyalists have also been stripped of their ministries. A cabinet expansion in the state is expected by Thursday.
Pilot rebelled against the Congress government Sunday, the second young turk of the party to do so since March when Jyotiraditya Scindia defected to the BJP with over 20 MLAs. While Pilot has been removed as deputy CM and state party chief, he remains a member of the Congress.
Subscribe to our channels on YouTube & Telegram
News media is in a crisis & only you can fix it
You are reading this because you value good, intelligent and objective journalism. We thank you for your time and your trust.
You also know that the news media is facing an unprecedented crisis. It is likely that you are also hearing of the brutal layoffs and pay-cuts hitting the industry. There are many reasons why the media’s economics is broken. But a big one is that good people are not yet paying enough for good journalism.
We have a newsroom filled with talented young reporters. We also have the country’s most robust editing and fact-checking team, finest news photographers and video professionals. We are building India’s most ambitious and energetic news platform. And we aren’t even three yet.
At ThePrint, we invest in quality journalists. We pay them fairly and on time even in this difficult period. As you may have noticed, we do not flinch from spending whatever it takes to make sure our reporters reach where the story is. Our stellar coronavirus coverage is a good example. You can check some of it here.
This comes with a sizable cost. For us to continue bringing quality journalism, we need readers like you to pay for it. Because the advertising market is broken too.
If you think we deserve your support, do join us in this endeavour to strengthen fair, free, courageous, and questioning journalism, please click on the link below. Your support will define our journalism, and ThePrint’s future. It will take just a few seconds of your time.