A day after Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot showed his strength by organising a Congress Legislature Party meet at his residence in Jaipur,  the party removed rebel leader Sachin Pilot from the State Cabinet as well as from the Pradesh Congress Committee president post.

All eyes are on Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot now.

Here are the latest updates:

Gehlot to hold Cabinet meet at 7.30 p.m.

Amid the possibility of a reshuffle in ministerial berths, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has convened a Cabinet meeting on July 14 evening.

The Cabinet meeting has been slated to be held at 7.30 p.m., said party sources.

After the Cabinet meeting, another meeting of the entire Council of Ministers, including the Ministers of State, too will take place at 8 p.m. at the Chief Minister’s residence, they added.

Gehlot should take floor test, demands BJP

As the ruling Congress in Rajasthan grapples with a rebellion led by Sachin Pilot, the BJP demanded that Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot take a floor test to prove his government’s majority in the Assembly.

The party also alleged that the residences of MLAs were being kept under police surveillance and the legislators of Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP) “had been threatened”.

The BTP, which has two MLAs in the Rajasthan assembly, has asked its legislators to remain neutral. It was earlier supporting the Gehlot government.

Prove majority in a floor test first and then go for a cabinet reshuffle. The result of the political fight is out, Leader of Opposition Gulab Chand Kataria told reporters.

Deputy Leader of Opposition Rajendra Rathore claimed that Ashok Gehlot government will not be able to prove its majority in a floor test.

BJP State president Satish Poonia said that the State government has lost the confidence of the people and it was time for its departure.

“The government has failed to deliver on its promises and failed to perform. We are keeping a watch on the situation and will follow the direction of the party leadership,” he said.

The party held a meeting of senior leaders to discuss the situation. Nagaur MP Hanuman Beniwal and convenor of Rashtriya Loktantrik Party, which is BJP’s ally, was also present. — PTI

Police force across Rajasthan alerted to ensure peace, maintain law and order

Police personnel across the Rajasthan have been alerted to maintain peace in their jurisdiction amid the political crisis in the state, an official said.

Following intelligence inputs and political happenings, police force across the state has been alerted to ensure peace and maintain law and order situation,” ADG (Law and Order) Saurabh Srivastava said.

He said that police force has been asked to keep a vigil so that common people do not have to suffer. - PTI

No one can take away the fact that Sachin worked with dedication for Congress: Jitin Prasada

Jatin Prasada.   | Photo Credit: Ramesh Sharma

No one can take away the fact that Sachin Pilot has long worked with dedication for the Congress, party leader Jitin Prasada said.

Mr. Prasada, considered a leader of the party’s ‘young brigade’, also expressed the hope that the situation can be salvaged.

“Sachin Pilot is not just a colleague but my friend. No one can take away the fact that all these years he has worked with dedication for the party,” Mr. Prasada tweeted adding that “Sincerely hope the situation can still be salvaged. Sad it has come to this.”

Pilot playing into the hands of BJP: Gehlot

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot addressing the CLP meeting.   | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused rebel leader Sachin Pilot of playing into the hands of the BJP.

He alleged that that the BJP wanted to repeat what it had done in Madhya Pradesh. But the BJP’s intentions will not fructify in Rajasthan, Mr. Gehlot said.

The chief minister said that Mr. Pilot and other ministers as well as MLAs were given ample opportunities but they did not attend the Congress Legislature Party meeting on Monday and Tuesday.

“There is nothing in the hands of Sachin Pilot. He is playing into the hands of the BJP which is making all the arrangements, he told reporters after meeting Governor Kalraj Mishra.

Mr. Gehlot met the Governor immediately after the Congress Legislature Party meeting where the decision to remove the three ministers was taken.

Truth can be rattled, not defeated: Pilot

Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot.  

Soon after his removal as Rajasthan deputy chief minister, rebel Congress leader Sachin Pilot said “truth can be rattled, not defeated“.

“Truth can be rattled, not defeated,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.

He also changed his profile on Twitter deleting all references to his position as deputy CM and Rajasthan Congress chief.

He only described himself as MLA of Tonk and a former Minister of IT, Telecom & Corporate affairs, Government of India.

Sachin Pilot sacked

Randeep Surjewala announcing the decision to remove Sachin Pilot from party and CAbinet posts, in Jaipur.   | Photo Credit: Rohit Jain Paras

Rebel leader Sachin Pilot has been removed from the State Cabinet as well as Pradesh Congress Committee president post. The decision was taken in the CLP meet.

Two Cabinet Ministers, Vishvendra Singh and Ramesh Meena, were also dropped from the Rajasthan Cabinet.

The announcement was made by Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala in Jaipur after the CLP meeting.

Minister of State for Education Govind Singh Dotasra will be the new Rajasthan PCC president, Mr. Surjewala said.

Mr. Surjewala said Mr. Pilot enjoyed the affection and blessings of Congress president Sonia Gandhi and was given political power at a young age. Yet, he and other ministers were trying to topple the state government as part of a BJP conspiracy, he added.

- Mohammad Iqbal

Rajasthan BJP leaders discuss Congress crisis

Amid the ongoing political crisis in Rajasthan, opposition BJP leaders met to discuss the current situation in the state.

A meeting has started at the BJP state office here in which party national joint general secretary V Satish, BJP state president Satish Poonia, leader of opposition Gulab Chand Kataria and deputy leader of opposition Rajendra Rathore are present. - PTI

The Congress leaders from the Pilot camp released a statement saying they stand by "their leader".

State Ministers Vishvender Singh and Ramesh Meena, and former Speaker Deepender Shekhawat said Mr. Pilot was "publicly humiliated".

Here is the full text of their statement

We have for years worked with dedication, devotion and service towards the party. And we are taking a stand to protect our dignity and self respect at a time when our leader is threatened with notices from the SOG under the charges of sedition and criminal conspiracy. This is unprecedented in Indian democracy and the Congress party, for whom we have toiled with sweat and blood. Under the leadership of Shri Sachin Pilot we have made every effort in the past 6 years to strengthen the party and bring it to power in Rajasthan at a time when it had been reduced to an insignificant number in the state assembly. Public humiliation of our leader Mr. Pilot is something that is totally unacceptable to us, and those responsible for meeting out this treatment need to be made accountable. We are seeking to restore our self respect and are not clamouring for any posts and positions contrary to false reports in the media. We have been senior members of the party for many years and have held many positions within the party and government and are not lured by inducements.

Pilot-loyalist MLAs demand floor test in Rajasthan Assembly

Amid the political crisis in Rajasthan, the demand for a floor test by the members of the Sachin Pilot camp has gained momentum, with state Food and Civil Supply Minister Ramesh Meena saying this will make it clear how many MLAs are with the Ashok Gehlot government.

Mr. Meena had skipped the CLP meets on both the days.

Congress MLA Deependra Singh Shekhawat too had raised the same demanded on Monday. - PTI

BJP wary after Maharashtra experience

The crisis in the Congress-led government in Rajasthan may have been compared to the situation that brought down the party’s government in Madhya Pradesh, with infighting between leaders and the high command’s failure to arrest it but for the BJP, the Rajasthan crisis is one where lessons learnt after the Maharashtra elections came in handy.

According to senior party sources, the debacle of government formation in Maharashtra, with current Finance Minister Ajit Pawar unable to back up his claim on numbers and the party’s humiliating retreat, has made the BJP tread with caution in dealing with Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot.

“Whereas any party would want a government in Rajasthan, we were not very sure of the numbers,” a senior party leader said. - Nistula Hebbar

Congress fault lines run across States

The open revolt in the Congress by Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, barely four months after Madhya Pradesh leader Jyotiraditya Scindia quit the party and joined the BJP, has once again brought into focus the Congress’s leadership battles across multiple States.

From Punjab to Haryana and Himachal Pradesh to Chhattisgarh, there is simmering discontent among leaders who are ready to challenge the State-level leadership, threatening to split the party. But the “high command” weakened by successive Lok Sabha election losses has failed to act decisively.

In Punjab, while Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh is facing almost a daily challenge from former State unit chief Partap Singh Bajwa, who often takes to social media to register his protests, cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu has almost gone into political hibernation.

Now, reports suggest Mr. Bajwa and Mr. Sidhu are coming together to take on the Chief Minister. And ironically, much like Mr. Scindia and Mr. Pilot, both leaders are considered to be close to former party chief Rahul Gandhi and his sister, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

In Haryana, the fight-to-the-finish turf war between former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and the State unit’s former chief, Ashok Tanwar, resulted in Mr. Tanwar’s exit just ahead of the Assembly polls last October.

Though the party brought in Kumari Selja in an effort to balance different factions, Mr. Hooda continues to tower over all other groups within the party.

It was clearly evident this March when the Congress leadership had to accept Mr. Hooda’s son, Deepender, as the party’s nominee in the Rajya Sabha election from Haryana over Mr. Gandhi’s preference, Randeep Surjewala.

Himachal Pradesh is witnessing a triangular contest among former Chief Minister Vir Bhadra Singh, Kaul Singh and current State Congress chief Kuldeep Singh Rathore.

In Chhattisgarh too, there is constant talk of intense rivalry between Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and Health Minister T.S. Singh Deo. - Sandeep Phukan

Pilot-led camp releases video showing 16 MLAs sitting together

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.

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 10-second video was shared late at night on Mr. Pilot’s official WhatsApp group.

Tourism Minister Vishvendra Singh tweeted the video with the caption “Family“.

The Congress Legislature Party meeting starts at Fairmont Hotel on the outskirts of Jaipur, where the Congress MLAs are staying. - Mohammad Iqbal

BTP asks MLAs to be neutral, neither support Gehlot nor Pilot

The Bhartiya Tribal Party (BTP), which has two MLAs in the Rajasthan assembly, has asked its legislators to remain neutral and not align either with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot or his deputy Sachin Pilot.

The BTP has also asked its MLAs neither to align with the Congress nor the BJP during the ongoing political crisis in the state.

It may be noted that both the BTP MLAs were present at the CLP meet at Mr. Gehlot's residence on Monday. - PTI

Sena targets BJP over political storm in Rajasthan

Attacking the BJP over the political crisis in Rajasthan, Congress-ally Shiv Sena accused the NDA constituent of working to destabilise governments of its opponents. An editorial in Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ asked the BJP what is it going to achieve with this political misadventure in the “desert”, and said such moves will turn the country’s parliamentary democracy into a desert.

The country is facing problems like a coronavirus- triggered collapse of the economy and Chinese intrusion in Ladakh. The killings of 20 Indian soldiers in a face-off with Chinese troops in Galwan Valley is still afresh. Instead of solving these issues, the BJP is interfering in the internal bickering of the Congress and “encouraging horse-trading” in Rajasthan, the editorial said. - PTI

Avinash Pande's appeal to Sachin Pilot

AICC general secretary and Rajasthan in-charge Avinash Pande has appealed to Sachin Pilot and MLAs supporting him to attend today's CLP meeting.

In a tweet in Hindi tagging Mr. Pilot, Mr. Pande requested Mr. Pilot to repose faith in the ideology and values ​​of the Congress, and strengthen the hands of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

Gehlot meets Congress emissaries

Before the scheduled CLP meeting, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot discusses the political situation with senior leaders Avinash Pande, Ajay Maken, Randeep Surjewala and some of his Cabinet colleagues at a high-level meeting.

Mr. Pande, along with Mr. Maken and Mr. Surjewala, has been camping in Jaipur for the past two days after being deputed by the party to make attempts to resolve the issues.

The CLP meet is scheduled to happen at 11 am. - Mohammad Iqbal

The breaking point

The power struggle between Mr. Gehlot and his deputy had been going on for quite some time but the latest flash point was triggered by a notice from the Special Operations Group (SOG) of Rajasthan police to the Deputy Chief Minister.

The SOG had sought time from Mr. Pilot to record his statement in a case of conspiracy and sedition registered after attempts were allegedly made by the BJP to bribe Congress MLAs to switch sides during last month's Rajya Sabha elections.

But Mr. Gehlot, on Twitter, had pointed out that the notice was misinterpreted as a similar notice was sent to the Chief Minister as well as the Congress had lodged a criminal complaint about attempted poaching.

Sachin Pilot, supporters unlikely attend the second CLP meet

As the Congress convened a second round of meetings with its legislators in Jaipur on Tuesday, Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot and his supporters will not attend.

Amid reports of the party's top leadership trying to placate Mr. Pilot, a source close to him denied that "any serious attempt was made to resolve the differences".

The same source also denied that the Pilot camp was keen on having key ministries like Home and Finance and insisted that the issue was one of "leadership and humiliation to Mr. Pilot" who continues to head the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) until now. - Sandeep Phukan

What does Pilot camp want?

Congress sources claimed that the group supporting the Deputy Chief Minister wanted the party to retain Mr. Pilot as Rajasthan Congress chief.

The sources also claimed that also on the table were demands to make four MLAs, supporting Mr. Pilot, Ministers in the Ashok Gehlot Cabinet as well as have a say in deciding 50% of the candidates in the upcoming Panchayat polls in the State.

Mr. Pilot, so far, has not issued any public statement and also did not respond to The Hindu’s attempt to reach him for his comments. - Sandeep Phukan

The story so far

The friction between Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his deputy Sachin Pilot is no secret. The latest in the series of tussles unfolded on Saturday when Mr. Gehlot blamed the opposition BJP of trying to topple his government by offering money to Congress MLAs, a charge the BJP vehemently denied.

Amid the war of words between Mr. Gehlot and the BJP leaders, the State Congress chief was unusually silent. He went incommunicado and along with a bunch of MLAs supporting him.

As the Congress high command tried to reach out a compromise between the two leaders, Mr. Gehlot conducted a CLP meet at his residence in Jaipur on Monday. Mr. Pilot was a notable absentee. Mr. Gehlot claimed he has the support of over 100 MLAs in the 200-seated Rajasthan Assembly.

Soon after the CLP meet, the MLAs, including some Independents, were lodged at a luxury resort.

In the meantime, the income tax department conducted searches at multiple locations in Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur and Kota, of which some were allegedly linked to two Congress leaders from Rajasthan.

Amid the political turmoil, the premises of Rajiv Arora, vice-president of the State Congress and founder of a jewellery house, and another party leader Dharmendra Rathore were allegedly searched in Rajasthan.