No Tradition in Congress to Offer Posts to Pacify Leaders: Ashok Gehlot

GG News Bureau

New Delhi, 29th May. In the midst of infighting in the Rajasthan Congress, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot stated on Monday that the party’s high command is strong and will never hand any post to any politician or worker in order to appease him.

His comments came ahead of a strategy meeting with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on the state’s impending elections.

On Monday, Kharge is scheduled for separate meetings with Gehlot and his adversary Sachin Pilot in order to unite them ahead of the assembly elections later this year.

The meeting follows Pilot’s “ultimatum” that if three requests from the state government were not met by the end of this month, he would start a state-wide agitation. One of Pilot’s demands is for a high-level investigation of alleged scams that occurred during the period of previous Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje’s government.

Speaking to reporters, Gehlot stated that there is no precedent in the party of offering positions to any leader in order to appease him.

“As far as I know, there is no such tradition in the Congress where any leader demands something and the party high command offers to give that position. We have not heard of such a formula ever,” he said when asked about reports of a formula being worked out to rope in Pilot.

Rubbishing such reports, he said, is only the creation of the media and some leaders may be getting such stories planted.

“The Congress party is strong and there is such a position that the high command offers to give any post to any leader to pacify any leader,” he said.

“Never has such a thing happened in the Congress so far and neither will it happen in the future. The Congress party and the high command is very strong and no leader or worker has the courage to demand any position. It does not happen like that,” the chief minister asserted.

Pilot and Gehlot have been at odds since the state’s Congress formed a government in 2018. Pilot staged an unsuccessful insurrection against the Gehlot administration in 2020, following which he was ousted as party state unit president and deputy chief minister.

Last month, the former Rajasthan deputy chief minister disobeyed the party’s admonition and went ahead with a day-long fast against Gehlot for his “inaction” on suspected corruption during the Raje government.

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