Time to end climate of indecision in Rajasthan, says Sachin Pilot amid fresh tussle
AMN / JAIPUR
Criticising state Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot for not initiating a single probe against the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government on a series of corruption, Sachin Pilot, former deputy CM, on Sunday announced a one-day ‘fast’ against his own government.
The sit-in cum fast is also aimed to mark the Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jayanti (birth anniversary of a social reformist) on April 11 here at Shaheed Smarak.
Addressing a press conference here, the Congress leader lamented that despite his letters to CM Gehlot in this regard, the state government did not take action in the former CM Vasundhara Raje’s corruption cases in the last four and half years. This, he apprehended might lead people to assume that there is a collusion between the two parties.
“I will sit alone on Anshan (fast),” Pilot declared when he was asked whether party MLAs and ministers supporting him would join the one-day protest.
Recalling the promise made by Congress during the 2018 assembly polls before coming to power that an inquiry would be conducted on the corruption cases reported under the previous Raje rule, Pilot said, “Six-seven months are left for the next assembly elections due in December. If we don’t clear the air on this, our opponents might spread the word that there is some ‘milibhagat’ (collusion) between the previous CM and the incumbent Congress CM.”
On the occasion, the former deputy chief minister showed some old video clips of Gehlot in which he had assured that he would take up the BJP’s corruption cases if voted to power. He also circulated a number of news pre-2018 clips in which Gehlot is seen slamming the Raje government over a mining scam accused of getting bail.