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Gehlot and Pilot part of Rajasthan Election Committee; Dotasra to head
The Congress party in Rajasthan has set up a 29-member Election Committee, led by Govind Dotasra, in an effort to present a united front ahead of the state assembly polls. The committee will recommend candidates for the elections to the party's Central Election Committee. The move comes after talks between the party's top leadership and the Rajasthan unit, and aims to diffuse tension between Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his former deputy Sachin Pilot.
Jaipur: The Congress on Thursday set up a 29-member Rajasthan Election Committee led by state unit chief Govind Dotasra and comprising both chief minister Ashok Gehlot and his former deputy Sachin Pilot, in a bid to project a united face ahead of the crucial assembly polls in the western state.
The state panel will recommend names of candidates for the assembly elections, scheduled for later this year, to the party’s Central Election Committee, a communication from the party said.
The announcement of the committee came after several rounds of talks between the Congress top brass and the Rajasthan unit. On July 6, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leader Rahul Gandhi, AICC Rajasthan in-charge Sukhjinder Randhawa and Congress general secretary KC Venugopal held the poll strategy meeting attended by 29 leaders from the state, including Dotasra, Gehlot and Pilot.
The party leadership has been trying to diffuse tension between Gehlot and Pilot, whose relationship has remained tainted since July 2020, when then deputy chief minister Pilot and 18 party MLAs revolted against Gehlot’s leadership. The crisis that lasted for nearly a month ended after the party high command intervened and removed Pilot as the deputy CM and state Congress chief.
A senior Congress leader, requesting anonymity, said everyone understands that to repeat the government and for better prospects in elections, a united front is must, especially between Gehlot and Pilot.
“Majority of the names in the committee are ministers in the Gehlot cabinet. Clarity on roles of different leaders will become clear after rest of the committees are announced,” the leader said. The party is yet to announce the Rajasthan campaign committee.
On July 6, Venugopal said all the leaders who attended the strategy meeting on Rajasthan “unanimously decided” that the Congress can win the state elections, “provided there is unity”.
“The party has decided that everyone should follow strict discipline. Any issues are to be discussed within the party, and no one has the freedom to speak about the party’s internal politics outside the party,” Venugopal had said.
After the meeting, party Kharge also signalled that the two factions had reached a truce. In a tweet, he said the state was “growing on the path of progress”, praised the Gehlot government for “the schemes of inclusive development and public welfare to every house” and added that, “We will take care of everyone’s aspirations. Both present and future of Rajasthan are safe in the hands of Congress.”
Among those in the 29-member panel include 16 ministers in the Gehlot-led cabinet. Former Union minister Jitendra Singh and senior party leaders Raghuveer Meena, Pratap Singh Kachariyawas, Rameshwar Dudi and Lalchand Kataria are also part of the panel.
Political experts said the Congress was trying to keep its house in order by bringing key leaders together in a panel.
“There is no surprise seeing Gehlot and Pilot together as it is on expected lines but early announcement of the committee and bringing all the key leaders together indicates the party’s focus is on showing a united front, and message ‘All is well’ now,” Jaipur-based political analyst Manish Godha said.
