The twists and turns in the story of Sachin Pilot and Ashok Gehlot don’t seem to stop anytime soon. The government in Rajasthan witnessed some high-voltage drama when the Congress Party formally sacked Sachin Pilot from the post of Deputy Chief Minister of the state. The party also removed him from the post of the president of the Pradesh Congress Committee.
Reacting to this, Sachin Pilot wrote on his Twitter. “Truth can be harassed, but cannot be defeated”. These lines remind of Scindia’s last tweets as the Congress member.
The reason for such an action by the Congress Party is the support of 102 MLAs. In the CLP meeting called by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, July 14, 102 MLAs confirmed their support to the Ashoke Gehlot government. Interestingly, 101 MLAs are required to cross the majority line in a 200-seats Rajasthan State Assembly.
Gehlot, being one of the experienced politicians in the Congress Party and a 3-times CM of the state, first ensured his majority. Once that was done, he moved on to eliminate Sachin Pilot. Remember, Ashok Gehlot never preferred Sachin and it was due to the pressure from 10 Janpath that he agreed to accommodate Sachin Pilot into his cabinet.
There is no doubt that Ashoke Gehlot has managed to save his government. But for how long is a big question.
Meanwhile, Congress leaders Vishvender Singh, Ramesh Meena and Deepender Shekhawat from Pilot’s camp have issued a statement saying, “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 meting out this treatment need to be made accountable.”
This statement by the Pilot camp presents a clear picture of what is happening in Rajasthan. And, what Ashok Gehlot in particular and Congress Party at large gained out of all the drama.
Even though Sachin Pilot lost his political positions inside the party and in the government, he very well managed to consolidate his camp. He very well managed to force the Congress party to take disciplinary action against him. This way, he created an exit route for himself and gained the sympathy of the masses, not only in Rajasthan but pan India.
On the contrary, Congress Party managed to lose a young and talented politician, yet again. For now, it is Congress – 0, Sachin Pilot – 1.
