Tag: Vasundhara Raje

Vasundhara Raje

Victory Of Mantra Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayaas: Vasundhara

By LokMarg

As BJP is heading to victory in Rajasthan Assembly polls, Former Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Vasundhara Raje on Sunday said the mantra given by Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayaas’ has emerged victorious.

According to the recent trends released by the Election Commission, the BJP is leading on 114 seats in a 200-member Assembly whereas Congress is ahead on 70 seats.

Addressing a press conference in Jaipur, BJP candidate Vasundhara Raje said, “This victory is of the mantra ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas and Sabka Prayaas’ given by PM Modi. It is the victory of the guarantee given by the Prime Minister. It is also the victory of the strategy given by Amit Shah and the able leadership provided by Nadda ji. Most importantly, it’s a victory for our party workers.”

“People have rejected the misgovernance of Congress and have elected the good governance of BJP,” she added.

Meanwhile, Vasundhara Raje has won from the Jhalrapatan constituency by a margin of 53,193 votes, garnering a total of 1,38,831 votes. She defeated Congress candidate Ramlal who got 85,638 votes.

Earlier today, Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Rajasthan incharge Pralhad Joshi said that the people of Rajasthan have voted for the BJP and the party is poised to cross at least 124 seats in the state.

Rajasthan went to the polls on 199 of 200 assembly seats on November 25.

The majority mark in the state is 100. In the Karanpur constituency, elections were adjourned due to the passing of Congress candidate Gurmeet Singh Koonar. (ANI)

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‘Upcoming Assembly Polls Do Not Augur Well For BJP’

By LokMarg

Ramsharan Joshi, a seasoned journalist, author and academic, says the NDA is on a shaky wicket in Rajasthan, MP, Chhattisgarh and Telengana

Vasundhara Raje Scindia is the only popular face of the BJP in Rajasthan. She has been a chief minister twice. And she commands the loyalty of 30 to 40 MLAs who are totally committed to her. No one can easily replace her despite the best efforts of Narendra Modi and Amit Shah.

In recent times, she has been challenging the central leadership of the BJP. She has never succumbed to the pressure of either Modi or Shah. This proves that she has a sizeable  following in her state.

She has been sidelined since long by the new dispensation in the party. I am told that Modi does not even mention her name in the rallies, even in her presence. As is the case in Madhya Pradesh, with Shivraj Singh Chauhan. There have been reports that Shah did not even look at her when she went to welcome him in the airport. Now, Shivraj is asserting himself, claiming that he will be the next chief minister, when it is well-known that he is simply not the first choice anymore in a state ridden with anti-incumbency.

For the first time perhaps, the BJP in Rajasthan is badly faction-ridden. There are groups within groups. Clearly, the party is feeling jittery, and so is the top brass in Delhi. One of the faction leaders has been sent to Assam as a governor to stop the inside-struggles for power.

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I vividly remember the BJP leading from the front with Bhairon Singh Shekhawat as its unilateral and popular leader. I have never seen such dissidence within the party in the past.

Recently, reportedly, a meeting was arranged between various factions. Shah and JP Nadda had to go there. Nothing could be resolved in this acrimonious atmosphere with all factions sticking to their guns, including Vasundhara. It apparently went on for eight hours or so. Finally, a disappointed and unhappy Shah and Nadda had to fly back to
Delhi in the wee hours at 3 am.

This reflects that the BJP in Rajasthan is not exactly toeing the line of Modi and Shah. Indeed, minus Vasundhara, the party has no chance to make it in the coming assembly polls. Undoubtedly, she will play her game.

My sources in Jaipur tell me that she might be demanding 30 to 40 seats for her committed followers. Or, she might even choose to leave the party – that is, if her wish is not granted to her.

Both, in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, MPs and central ministers are being pitched as candidates in small MLA constituencies. If this is not a reflection of their desperation, then what is this? According to sources, Speaker Om Birla is being pitched as one of the next chief ministerial candidates. The problem is that even in his own constituency of Kota, he does not command a mass following!

Shivraj Singh Chauhan has been a CM for almost two decades. Besides, he is an OBC leader. The BJP is trying to get rid of old war horses. Raman Singh seems to have disappeared in Chhattisgarh!

In a recent rally Shivraj Singh Chauhan seems to have openly challenged Modi. He is fondly called ‘Mama’ in MP. He declared, “Will Mama form the next government?” The audience shouted, Yes! This seems to be becoming his rallying point in the campaign. 

The Congress has a clear edge in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, given the current mood and scenario in these states. Their share of seats might come down. It might be tight in Rajasthan, but given the factions in the BJP, the Congress has an advantage. Besides, Ashok Gehlot is himself an OBC – a Maali. And, now, he too has declared a caste survey – so the religious polarization card will simply not work!

In Telengana, the latest opinion poll gives 44 per cent to the Congress and only 32 per cent to BRS. With several leaders ditching the ruling party here and joining the Congress, it seems a sticky wicket for KCR. The BJP is down below in the graph, as it is now in entire South of India. Even the AIADMK has left them in Tamil Nadu. The BJP seems to be bereft of any effective ally all over India.

Finally, the results of the assembly polls will seriously impact the chances of the BJP in 2024. The theory that polling patterns in the assembly and Lok Sabha polls are different is not always true. Especially, when it is the one-dimensional personality of Modi, which is being pitched as the only and ultimate leader — even in local and regional polls.

(The narrator has worked across the Hindi heartland and travelled across the world on reporting assignments. His books include Yaadon ka Laal Galiyara: Dantewada, Pratibimban: Vyakti, Vichaar aur Samaaj, Aadmi, Bel aur Sapne, Apno ke Paas, Apno se Door, Navudarvaad ke Daur Mein, among others. The translated version of his latest book, his autobiography, The Bonsai of my Time, was released in Delhi early this year.)

As told to Amit Sengupta

Sachin Pilot

Gehlot’s Leader Is Vasundhara Raje: Sachin Pilot

By LokMarg

Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Tuesday took a sharp jibe at Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, saying that his speech in Dholpur showed his leader “is not Sonia Gandhi but Vasundhara Raje Scindia”.

Gehlot had claimed that Vasundhara Raje was among BJP leaders who helped him save his government during the revolt by Pilot and some Congress MLAs in 2020 seeking change in leadership in the state.
Addressing a press conference, Pilot also said that he has now understood why Gehlot “has not acted” on his allegations of corruption during the BJP government in the state.

“After listening to Ashok Gehlot’s speech in Dholpur, it seems like his leader is not Sonia Gandhi but Vasundhara Raje Scindia… For the first time, I am seeing someone criticize MPs and MLAs of their own party. Praising leaders from BJP and dishonouring Congress leaders is beyond my understanding, this is absolutely wrong,” Pilot said.

“I have now understood why the CM (Ashok Gehlot) has not acted against corruption,” he added.

Pilot’s attack amounts to an escalation of his conflict with Gehlot in the crucial state which will go to the polls by the end of this year.

The attack on Gehlot came a day before polling in Karnataka polls in which Congress is fighting a crucial battle.

Pilot,a former Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister, announced that he will hold a five-day-long ‘Jan Sangarsh Yatra’ from Ajmer to Jaipur starting May 11.

“This yatra is against corruption. Any further decision will be taken after this yatra,” he said.

Pilot had held a day-long fast last month, even as the party leadership had cautioned him against it, over his demand for action by the Gehlot government for alleged corruption during the BJP rule in the state.

BJP leader Vasundhara Raje had countered Ashok Gehlot’s claims, saying Rajasthan Chief Minister is lying out of fear of losing the 2023 Assembly elections and his false allegations show he is rattled by the rebellion in state Congress unit.

Gehlot had credited Vasundhara Raje and two other Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders for having helped him save his government during the 2020 crisis when some Congress MLAs revolted.

“Gehlot’s statement against me is a conspiracy. Nobody can insult me as much as Gehlot has done. He is lying out of fear of losing the 2023 Assembly elections and has made such false allegations as he is rattled by the rebellion in his own party,” Raje had said.

Addressing a programme in Dholpur on Sunday, Gehlot alleged that there was a conspiracy against his government.

“Former Chief Minister of Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje Scindia, Shobha Rani and Kailash Meghwal knew their party people were toppling the government. Vasundhara Raje Scindia and Kailash Meghwal had said that it has never been our tradition to topple the elected government on the basis of money. They did not support those who toppled the government due to which our government survived,” Gehlot had said.

Both Pilot and Gehlot have taken potshots at each other in the past forcing the party leadership to intervene. (ANI)

Raje’s Role In Gehlot Govt Survival

By Anita Katyal

Ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah took control of the government and the party, most Bharatiya Janata Party leaders have been reduced to pygmies. But recent developments in Rajasthan have shown that senior party leader Vasundhara Raje is no push-over and that she is unafraid to take on the Central leadership.

The two-time Rajasthan chief minister steadfastly refused to endorse the party’s decision to dislodge the Ashok Gehlot government, forcing the saffron camp to abandon this plan. As a result, the Gehlot sailed through a trust vote last week after the BJP-supported rebellion by disgruntled Congress leader Sachin Pilot failed to take-off because of Raje’s non-cooperation.

Raje proved that despite her electoral defeat two years ago and the party’s best efforts to marginalise her, the Central leadership can ill-afford to ignore her as she commands the loyalty of 50 of the 72 BJP legislators.

Moreover, Raje’s charisma and appeal put her on top of the list of vote catchers in Rajasthan where she remains a dominant force. Raje has the capacity to lead the BJP to a victory in the next election. But conversely, she can also play spoiler and give the party a tough time.

Irked by Raje’s obduracy and desperate to put her in place, the BJP’s Central leadership (read Amit Shah) proceeded to go ahead with its plan to overthrow the Congress government in Rajasthan without taking the former chief minister into confidence. The task of implementing these plans was entrusted to Union Jal Shakti minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (a Shah favourite), Satish Poonia, president of the party’s Rajasthan unit, and BJP’s legislature party leader Gulab Chand Kataria.

The pride of place given to Shekhawat was a clear message to the party rank and file that he was the leadership’s chief ministerial candidate once the party succeeded in dethroning the Gehlot government.

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But the BJP soon realised that it needed Raje on board but she refused to fall in line. On her part, the former chief minister had her reasons for thwarting the party’s plans. Not willing to settle for anything less than the top post, Raje was clearly angry with her bete noire Shekhawat’s projection as the future Rajasthan chief minister. Raje was obviously was not going to make it easy for anyone else to snatch this post from her. It was the same reason that she was unhappy over Pilot’s possible induction into the BJP as he has also set his eyes on the chief minister’s chair.

Though the BJP consistently denied that the revolt led by Sachin Pilot was an internal affair of the Congress, the saffron camp had been in touch with him for several months before he finally walked out with 19 loyal legislators to demand Gehlot’s removal. The rebels were spirited away to a resort in BJP-ruled Haryana. In fact, the “operation kamal”, designed on the same lines as similar successful exercises it executed in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh.

For the record, Pilot maintained that he had been humiliated by Gehlot for the past two years and that he was driven to take the extreme step of going public with his grievances after he was sent a notice by the police in connection with the BJP’s plan to “bribe” Congress legislators.

Responding in equal measure, Gehlot collected his loyalist MLAs and sequestered them in a hotel in Jaipur, making sure there was no contact between them and the Pilot camp or the BJP. Gehlot guarded his flock zealously, making sure that the numbers in the rebel camp did not touch the magic figure of 30, the required figure to bring down his government. The chief minister maintained he had the support of 100-plus legislators in the 200-member assembly and accused the BJP of using “money power” to destabilise his government.

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Even as this drama continued for nearly a month, Raje maintained a studied silence. Her colleagues, Shekhawat, Poonia and Kataria, on the other hand, were never at a loss to offer their comments on the Congress crisis. It was only when her silence and absence became a talking point that Raje posted one wishy-washy tweet, saying the people of Rajasthan were suffering because of the continuing rift within the ruling Congress.

In a tweet posted on July 18, Raje said, “There is no point in trying to drag the BJP and the BJP leaders’ names through the mud. It is the interest of our people that must remain paramount.” This was meant essentially to dispel the public perception that she was helping Gehlot.

Raje was only spotted in Jaipur on August 14 when she attended the assembly session where Gehlot won the trust vote. She later told the media that she was unaware of the past month’s developments as she was observing shravan mass, the holy month of monsoon, and was busy with pujas at her Dholpur home. She had earlier skipped a party meeting, which had to be called off because of her absence.

She did surface briefly in Delhi on August 7 for a meeting with BJP president JP Nadda where she refused to get involved in the party’s efforts to bring down the Gehlot government. Instead she complained that she was being ignored and deliberately sidelined in Rajasthan. The recently reconstituted executive committee of the state unit has not accommodated her supporters while the state unit chief Poonia and opposition leader Kataria are known to be Raje baiters.

Unable to persuade her to fall in line with its plans and unwilling to risk alienating Raje, the BJP had no option but to call off “operation kamal” in Rajasthan. This was a major victory for Raje though it is early days to say what the future holds for her as the current BJP leadership is unlikely to forget her intransigence in a hurry.

Till then Raje can enjoy this victory as she has clearly won this round and is worthy of being declared the “man of the match”.