In what is shaping up to be a new political furore in Rajasthan, which is scheduled to go to polls later this year, BJP leader Vasundhara Raje alleged that Ashok Gehlot’s praises for her are part of a conspiracy against her.
Raje’s clarification came after Chief Minister and Veteran Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Sunday heaped praises on her saying that she helped in saving his government during the 2020 Sachin Pilot revolt period.
Gehlot also accused Home Minister and BJP mastermind Amit Shah of political play adding that he along with Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Dharmendra Pradhan conspired to topple his government.
Raje, however, dismissed Gehlot’s remarks at the Dholpur rally as a conspiracy and also slammed him for accusing Amit Shah of dirty politics.
“Ashok Gehlot is lying due to fear of defeat in 2023. He has accused the Home Minister Amit Shah, whose honesty and integrity are well known,” said Raje in response to Gehlot’s charge against her party leadership.
Gehlot on Sunday claimed he survived the 2020-revolt 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.
He further said that as the state party chief, even he did not support the toppling of the BJP government led by Bhairon Singh Shekhawat as it was unfair, in the same manner, Raje and Meghwal said that there is no tradition in Rajasthan to topple an elected government.
Raje is the former Chief Minister of Rajasthan and is believed to share a decent professional rapport with Gehlot.
Time and again, both leaders were accused of going soft on each other on the political front despite being in the opposite team.
His then-deputy Sachin Pilot and 18 other Congress MLAs revolted against his leadership in July 2020. The month-long crisis ended after the intervention of the party’s high command. Pilot was then removed as the deputy chief minister and state Congress president.
With inputs from News18