Congress' only option to win Rajasthan: fire Sachin Pilot or make him CM face

New Delhi: Congress needs to learn from past mistakes. And soon. With just about six months remaining for the crucial Legislative Assembly polls in Rajasthan, a “no decision” approach could mean Punjab-like disaster for the grand old party.

Sources stated that Congress leadership needs to act on the Rajasthan leadership issue soon. “The choice for the grand old party is simple: fire Sachin Pilot or make him their Chief Ministerial face. This will remove any ambiguity in front of state leadership and cadre and ensure that the party fights as one unit,” sources said.

The more the delay by the central leadership, the more damage it is expected to have on the Congress’s performance in the Assembly polls scheduled for later this year, sources added.

Leaders in the party feel that by giving full control to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Congress will be able to consolidate behind his leadership and will put the feud to an end. This will also ensure that Sachin Pilot will not find any takers in the Bharatiya Janata Party. 

Pilot will only be useful for the saffron front if he is able to damage the Congress majorly and ensure that it is ruled out of the fray in the contest for the 200-member Assembly.  

Gehlot, also termed Jaadugar, is known for his political acumen and is expected to be a bigger asset for the grand old party rather than the disgruntled Pilot who doesn’t command the numbers game or caste matrix. The party high command needs to wake up from its slumber and act soon to ensure that Congress is back in the reckoning in Rajasthan, sources added. 

Over the past few years, the Rajasthan Congress has been constantly facing a feud between Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his former deputy Sachin Pilot. 

Though the Congress claims that the matter between its two top leaders has been resolved after the intervention of party high command, the friction in the state unit is far from being resolved.

Over the past few weeks, Pilot has launched an agitation against corruption, going against the order of the Congress’ top leadership. Despite an open rebellion by Pilot and anti-incumbency against the Ashok Gehlot government, many in the party believe that Congress can still win the forthcoming Assembly polls in the desert state.

But unless the Central leadership decides to ensure discipline and decorum in the Rajasthan state unit, victory in the 2023 Legislative Assembly polls will be a distant dream. It is learnt that the decision on Rajasthan is expected by the party high command after it settles the ongoing leadership issue in Karnataka.

Rajasthan is an important state for both the BJP and Congress and the two parties are in direct contest for the important state ahead of the crucial 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

The BJP hopes to boost the morale of its cadre ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls by convincingly drubbing the Congress in the crucial assembly elections. While the Congress hopes to retain the biggest state in its kitty.

The BJP-Rashtriya Loktantrik Party alliance secured all 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan in 2019. This completely reversed the Assembly polls outcome of 2018 where the BJP was only able to secure 75 seats in the 200 members Assembly. The BJP had also successfully secured all 25 Lok Sabha seats in Rajasthan in the 2014 general elections, a record which the saffron unit wants to repeat in 2024 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks an unprecedented third term in office.

After the Karnataka Assembly polls victory, the Congress has been infused with new-found confidence. And the party needs to make use of this opportunity to make a turnaround in its political fortunes, giving the BJP a serious contest in the 2024 general elections.