Rajasthan Political Crisis: Over 80 MLAs From Gehlot Government Put Forth Resignation, Members Against Pilot Being CM
Jaipur, 26th September 2022: The stir in the politics of Rajasthan regarding the election of the Congress President has become a storm. Amid Gehlot’s claim for the post of President, the Gehlot faction has shown a rebellious attitude against the decision of the high command to hand over the throne of Rajasthan to Sachin Pilot. Keeping the demand that no one will leave except Pilot, more than 80 MLAs of the Gehlot camp submitted their resignations to Assembly Speaker CP Joshi on Sunday night. In such a situation, the biggest question that arises is whether Gehlot is going to topple his government in Rajasthan.
Pratap Khachariyawas, a minister in the Gehlot government who is close to the CM, spoke of the resignation of 92 MLAs. He said that the high command has decided to give its verdict without the opinion of the MLAs, which is not right. He was asked to pass a one-line resolution that the chief minister’s decision would be taken by the high command. However, when asked whether the government was going to fall, he denied it. He said that the government does not fall like this.
The game plan of Gehlot camp is hidden. Gehlot does not want to topple his government. Rather, he is trying to put pressure on the Congress’s high command that the decision of Rajasthan should be done based on their consent. He wants power to be given to anyone except Pilot, who has shown a rebellious attitude in 2020, and the MLAs close to him, in which Speaker CP Joshi is at the fore. All the MLAs of the Gehlot faction have submitted their resignations to the Speaker, but their membership does not end until the Speaker accepts them. The Speaker is yet to take any decision on the resignations.
The attitude of the Gehlot camp is also being seen as a direct challenge to the high command. Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi, former president Rahul Gandhi, and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi agreed on Pilot’s name. But now, the high command’s decision has been opposed. According to political experts, if the Gehlot camp does not change its decision, then the high command may also be forced to act, which may backfire for Gehlot. Gehlot challenged the dominance of the Gandhi family even before becoming the President. It may go against them.
Gehlot may not want to topple his government, and his MLAs have resigned under pressure from politics, but this bet can also backfire. With the kind of stand and open opposition Pilot is taking, it is possible that Pilot’s ‘patience’ may also be broken. If the high command fails to handle the situation, the Pilot camp can also open the front. Pilot has around 25 MLAs, who can leave the party at his one behest. Even if this happens, it will be difficult for the government to survive.
The Congress has 108 MLAs in the 200-seat Rajasthan Assembly. The government is supported by two of the Communist Party of India Marx, two from the Tribal Party of India, one from the Rashtriya Lok Dal and 13 independents. Of the 108 Congress MLAs, around 80-90 are in the Gehlot camp, and about 25 are in the Pilot faction. Talking about the opposition, BJP has 71 MLAs, and Rashtriya Loktantrik Party has three members.
