Rajasthan: Congress's new strategy to broker truce between Gehlot, Pilot
Senior Congress leaders have reportedly asked former Rajasthan minister Harish Choudhary to broker peace between Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot, who have been locked in a power tussle since 2018. The development comes after Choudhary's alleged meeting with former grand old party President Rahul Gandhi last Tuesday during his two-day visit to New Delhi to discuss the ongoing party feud in Rajasthan.
Why does this story matter?
Political instability in Rajasthan is deepening ahead of the assembly polls later this year. The clash between Gehlot and Pilot escalated in April when Pilot held a day-long fast, defying party warnings, over "inaction" against alleged corruption by the previous Vasundhara Raje government. In 2020, the infighting sparked a rebellion by Pilot and 18 MLAs, leading Congress to sack him as the deputy CM.
Congress's previous failed efforts to resolve Gehlot, Pilot tussle
To pacify Pilot and Gehlot, the top Congress leadership had previously appointed three state in-charges, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Avinash Pande, and Ajay Maken. Nonetheless, all efforts for a truce failed to yield any desired results. However, sources revealed that Gandhi has now asked Choudhary to act as a mediator between the two Congress leaders and resolve the friction at the earliest.
Details on Choudhary's work to broker truce between Gehlot, Pilot
Reportedly, Choudhary, the Congress general secretary in charge of the Punjab Congress, is a close aide of former Congress president Gandhi. As per the news outlet the Hindustan Times, Choudhary has held a series of talks with Pilot, Gehlot, Randhawa, and other top state ministers in the past week to strategize ways to settle the ongoing power tussle within the Congress.
Choudhary working as messenger: Party sources
Meanwhile, an unnamed senior Congress leader told HT Choudhary could be working as the messenger between the two leaders and the high command. "Gehlot is unwell and might be that Chaudhary is acting as a messenger between - the high command, Gehlot, and Pilot. The high command is considering bringing a change in the organization and government, which is expected soon," revealed the source.
Gehlot and Pilot are mature leaders: Choudhary
However, Choudhary refuted rumors of him being given the responsibility to arrange a truce between Pilot and Gehlot and labeled them "mature leaders." "Every party is facing such issues, and they resolve it accordingly. It does not mean that there is any faction in the party," the MLA from Baytu told the Hindustan Times in an interview.
Feud between Pilot, Gehlot further escalated in April: Know why
The feud between Pilot and Gehlot intensified in April after the former demanded action against corruption by the previous Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. He also demanded the reconstitution of the Rajasthan Public Service Commission and compensation for those affected by exam paper leaks. Pilot observed a day-long fast over his demands, even after Randhawa flagged the protest as being against the Congress's interests.
