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Earlier in the day, it seemed Gehlot’s prospects of becoming party chief were doomed. Sonia Gandhi summoned Madhya Pradesh leader Kamal Nath for a discussion – she is learned to have asked him about his plans. Nath, however, seems to have suggested that he wants to continue his focus on Bhopal.
The disinclination of Kamal Nath has created complications for the leadership. The troubleshooters seem to have appreciated the pitfall in switching horses at this stage. They have opened a channel of communication with the Jaipur leadership, calculating that the opprobrium for having defied the leadership would help chasten Gehlot.
Cong still hopes for deal with Gehlot if he too climbs down
New Delhi: Amid the crisis in Rajasthan, a senior Congress troubleshooter told TOI, “We are working to restore things as they stood before Monday’s drama. It includes the Congress president’s election.” This implies that the party is still working to convince Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot by negotiating on related issues, provided he also climbs down a bit.
Madhya Pradesh veteran Kamal Nath, who is learned to have told Congress president Sonia Gandhi that he wants to focus on Bhopal, is seen by many as the best positioned to generate consensus on his candidature because of his seniority and familiarity with functionaries in the states and by virtue of being one of the select few at the top who are also successful in electoral politics.
Till Monday, Gehlot was scheduled to file his nomination for the presidential elections, which is part of the party’s plan to have a non-Gandhi in the top chair. After much dilly-dallying, Gehlot made the announcement last week, while also agreeing to leave the chief minister’s post, though without any clarity on its timing.
The defiance of MLAs on Monday clearly appeared to have upended the process. Party members said, what had appeared a “Gehlot-as-Congress-president” scenario had been reopened by the “indiscipline”. The names of Mallikarjun Kharge, Sushil Kumar Shinde, Digvijaya Singh and Mukul Wasnik are now back in speculation as alternatives to Gehlot.
Sonia Gandhi held a meeting with Kharge and Ajay Maken, who went for the ill-fated legislature party meeting to pick the successor to Gehlot as the chief minister. The two managers apprised Sonia of the developments in Jaipur, and Maken said the Congress president had asked them for a written report.
All eyes are on a possible resolution. Gehlot is said to have told the Congress managers that he had no role in the boycott by the MLAs and was “apologetic” about it. He came to see off the central emissaries on Monday afternoon as they left for Delhi, but could only meet Kharge.
The protestation of innocence did not quite appear to wash. Talking to reporters, Maken termed the boycott of legislature party meeting “gross indiscipline”. He said that the meeting had been convened after Gehlot’s consent and at his residence.
Maken said that the MLAs loyal to the chief minister could not have forced conditions on the resolution that was to be passed to authorise the Congress president to nominate Gehlot’s successor. The MLAs had demanded that Sachin Pilot, who led the aborted rebellion against the party in mid-2020, would not be made the chief minister, and that the decision would only be taken after October 19 (the end of presidential poll).
Maken said that the demand for postponing the election of the new leader of CLP was untenable as on October 19, Gehlot would be the national president and would then be deciding his own successor. He termed it a “conflict of interest”.
Sources said that “some action” would be taken for indiscipline, but it may only be showcause notices to a couple of key players in the boycott drama.
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