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By Dev Ankur Wadhawan: After Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot claimed that his predecessor Vasundhara Raje and two BJP leaders helped save his government in 2020, Cabinet minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas said the grand old party will have to put up a united front if it has to give a stiff fight to the saffron party in the state.
The Assembly election in Rajasthan is slated later this year.
“Fight for every seat is there for every party. BJP will be defeated in the upcoming elections. If Ashok Gehlot has said anything wrong, the leaders of BJP should come out in the open. The Congress needs to put up a united front under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi to give a stiff fight,” Khachariyawas told India Today.
In July 2020, Gehlot’s then-deputy Sachin Pilot and 18 other Congress MLAs revolted against his leadership. 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.
ALSO READ | Sachin Pilot vs Ashok Gehlot: Has Rajasthan leadership issue, simmering for years, come to a head?
Addressing an event in Dholpur on Sunday, Gehlot alleged that the Congress managed to save its government due to Vasundhara Raje and two BJP leaders — former assembly speaker Kailash Meghwal and MLA Shobharani Kushwah.
To strengthen his claim, Gehlot said as the state party chief, 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 did not support the toppling of the Congress government in 2020,” he asserted.
The chief minister also took a swipe at the rebel Congress MLAs saying they should return the money they had taken from the BJP so that they can carry out their duty without any pressure.
In response, several BJP leaders, including Vasundhara Raje hit out at Gehlot for his remarks, saying it was a “lie” and a “conspiracy”.
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