Continuing his rebellion against Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Congress leader Sachin Pilot began his “Jan Sangharsh Yatra” from Ajmer on Thursday. Under “Jan Sangharsh Yatra”, the former deputy Chief Minister will cover nearly 125 km in five days on issues of corruption and paper leaks.
Before starting the 125-km-long five-day yatra, Pilot addressed a public gathering on the Jaipur Highway in Ajmer and raised the issue of leaking question papers for recruitment in different government posts.
He asked why was a bulldozer not run over the property of a Rajasthan Public Service Commission member arrested a few days ago in connection with the paper leak when the same was done to another accused in the same case.
Asserting that the youths are the future of the state and country, Pilot said his march was not against anyone, but against corruption and for protecting the interest of the youths.
Pilot will halt for the night at Tolamal village in Kishangarh.
Pilot has asserted that his march was not against anyone, but against corruption and over issues such as paper leaks.
However, his move is being seen as a sign that the dissident Congress leader will continue to pile pressure on Gehlot and the party’s central leadership as the year-end assembly elections approach.
Pilot vs Gehlot tussle
Gehlot and Pilot have been at loggerheads publicly for more than two years. The feud between the two top Congress leaders in Rajasthan saw an ugly phase when CM Gehlot accused Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Pilot of conniving to topple his government in 2020 after the latter led a rebellion in the party for a change of leadership in the state.
However, Gehlot managed to survive and Pilot and some of his loyalists were later ousted from the state cabinet.
Gehlot, while addressing a public programme in Dholpur on Sunday, had claimed that he survived a revolt in 2020 by some Congress MLAs because BJP leaders Vasundhara Raje and Kailash Meghwal refused to support a conspiracy to topple an elected government through money power.
On Wednesday, Pilot targeted Gehlot over his comments, saying it appeared that the veteran Congressman’s leader was Vasundhara Raje Scindia and not Sonia Gandhi.
He had also rejected the charge that the dissidents – whom he had led — took any money from the BJP.
Last month, the Tonk MLA and former deputy of Gehlot held a day-long fast, targeting his own party’s government in Rajasthan for “inaction” in alleged cases of corruption when the BJP ran the state.
Addressing a press conference on April 9, Pilot said he appealed to CM Gehlot to act on the allegations against the previous Vasundhara Raje government but got no response.
Pilot said he and Gehlot levelled those allegations against the government of Vasundhara Raje together, adding that he levelled some charges as the then president of the state unit of the party.
“I do not believe in revenge politics. But we had some credibility as the opposition and that’s why we came to power,” Sachin Pilot had said while announcing a one-day hunger strike on April 11.
(With PTI Inputs)
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