Strong points
- Congress faces cliffhanger today in Rajasthan
- Sachin Pilot about to miss Congress Deputies meeting in Jaipur
- Congress called a press meeting at 2:30 a.m. to deny any crisis
Jaipur / New Delhi:
Congress faces a cliffhanger today in Rajasthan, where its number two leader Sachin Pilot has rebelled and could make it official by skipping a crucial meeting called by its main adversary, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, this morning. Sachin Pilot, 42, is in Delhi with loyal MPs; the deputy chief minister claims that he has the support of 30 people, enough to overthrow the government of Congress. Congress called a press meeting at 2:30 a.m. to deny any crisis, calling for the support of 109 people in a 200-member assembly.
Here are 10 developments in this great story:
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Congress sources say they are working on a possible last-minute turnaround by Sachin Pilot, who is also head of Congress in Rajasthan. “What makes you think Sachin Pilot will not be attending the MPs meeting,” congressional leaders said during the late evening briefing, saying that action would be taken against those who are absent. Party sources believe that Sachin Pilot has no more than 16 MPs on his side.
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Sachin Pilot is likely to meet the head of the BJP JP Nadda in Delhi amid rumors that he would take the Jyotiraditya Scindia route to try to recover his political space.
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In March, Jyotiraditya Scindia, a close associate of Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, stunned the party by defecting from the BJP with 22 MPs from Madhya Pradesh, which caused the government of Congress to collapse in that state. With the help of Mr. Scindia, the BJP returned to power.
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At the same time, Sachin Pilot, another Rahul Gandhi confidant who had been irritated after being denied the chief ministry of Rajasthan, was also said to have started talks with the BJP.
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Congress has denied any threats to its government in Rajasthan. “A total of 109 deputies signed a letter expressing their confidence and support for the government led by chief minister Ashok Gehlot and the leadership of Sonia Gandhi-ji and Rahul Gandhi-ji,” Congress chief said at 2:30 a.m. Rajasthan, Avinash Pande. Report. The majority score is 101.
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After nearly two years of a thrilling quarrel with Ashok Gehlot, the tipping point for Sachin Pilot came after he was summoned for questioning in an investigation into an alleged attempt to destabilize state government before the elections by Rajya Sabha. The summons was based on what police said were wiretapped telephone conversations of two BJP members arrested on Friday.
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Chief Minister Gehlot tried to minimize the convening of the Special Operations Group, saying that he too had received it. This was not the case with a furious Sachin pilot, whose assistants pointed out that as Minister of the Interior of the State in charge of the Special Operations Group, Mr. Gehlot had practically given himself the convocation like an eye drop.
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“No one wants to leave their home, but they cannot continue to endure this kind of humiliation; my MPs and supporters are extremely hurt and I will have to listen to them,” Sachin Pilot told journalist and senior political analyst Javed Ansari on Sunday.
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The Congress has 107 seats in the Rajasthan Assembly, which has 200 people, and is supported by 10 independent candidates. Five MLAS from other parties – the Rashtriya Lok Dal, the CPM and the Bharatiya Tribal Party – support Ashok Gehlot, who said on Saturday that the BJP offered deputies up to Rs 15 crore to change sides.
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The BJP, which has 73 deputies, needs the support of 35 others to take power in Rajasthan. Offering Sachin Pilot the post of chief minister as he wishes will be a challenge as the party must contemplate its own power plant in Rajasthan, former chief minister Vasundhara Raje.