Amid continuing tussle in the Rajasthan unit of the Congress, party president Mallikarjun Kharge will meet Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot in Delhi on Monday. The move is being seen as an attempt to broker peace between the two ahead of the Assembly elections due in November-December, reported PTI.
When asked by reporters about the meeting Kharge said, “Let them (Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot) come. We will discuss and decide whatever is in the interest of the party.”
Meanwhile, Gehlot said that he has never seen the Congress leadership make attempts to placate someone. When asked about various “formulae” being speculated CM Gehlot said, “Never in my life have I seen a tradition in Congress that a leader demands something or high command asks him what post he wants…High Command & Congress party are so strong that such a situation will not arise that you are making an offer to pacify someone. It has never happened, it will never happen.”
The Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee (RPCC) has been in a state of turmoil since July 2020, when Pilot staged a revolt seeking a leadership change in the state. Following the revolt, Pilot, who was the deputy Chief Minister, was removed from the post. He was also removed as the president of the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee.
Kharge is expected to meet the two leaders separately to understand the viewpoints of both sides. A joint meeting can only be held after differences are ironed out, The Indian Express reported, citing sources.
The meeting by the Congress president comes after Pilot held a daylong hunger strike in Jaipur in April, demanding action against the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government over corruption allegations. The move by Pilot was seen as an attempt to corner the Rajasthan CM.
Later, former Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath was brought into the picture to mediate between the two, who met Pilot and AICC general secretary in charge of organisation K C Venugopal. But, it was not fruitful.
Rajasthan will also be a test for Kharge as the president of the Congress party. Having taken charge as the first non-Gandhi Congress president in 20-plus years, Kharge has so far led the party to massive wins in two Assembly elections, ousting the BJP from power in Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka.