Upcoming ‘Invest Rajasthan Summit-2022’ gives the Chief Minister the opportunity to show all is well after he lost out the opportunity to be next Congress president
Upcoming ‘Invest Rajasthan Summit-2022’ gives the Chief Minister the opportunity to show all is well after he lost out the opportunity to be next Congress president
More than a week after Rajasthan MLAs threw a challenge at the Congress’ central leadership by boycotting the meeting of the Congress Legislative Party to back Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, which followed a public apology to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, it’s business as usual in Jaipur, where the State government is organising the ‘Invest Rajasthan Summit-2022’.
Memorandums of Understanding and Letters of Intent worth ₹10.44 lakh crore have been signed ahead of the summit, which will be attended by about 3,000 delegates from India and abroad. Industrialists L.N. Mittal, Gautam Adani, C.K. Birla, Anil Agrawal, Ajay Shriram and Vikram Kirloskar will be attending the summit. Originally scheduled for January 24 to 25, the event was deferred to October because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The summit gives Mr. Gehlot the opportunity to show all is well after he lost out the opportunity to be next Congress president. In the last nine days, sources said the State administration is displaying unprecedented alacrity in clearing projects and appointments. On Monday, a day after the infamous rebellion by MLAs supporting Mr. Gehlot, the Chief Minister cleared the appointment of Sangeet Beniwal as the Chairperson of the Rajasthan State Commission for Protection of Child Rights. Mr. Gehlot also declared that he will be presenting the next year’s State Budget, which may come earlier than usual because of the 2023 State Assembly election. He also gave instructions to the Secretaries of all departments to speed up implementation of the 2022-23 budgetary announcements on Tuesday.
“I understand that there will be no delay in the Budget presentation, because everyone has to face the election after the [budgetary] exercise,” Mr. Gehlot told reporters after addressing a meeting of the Secretaries. The 2023-24 Budget would be dedicated to youths, Mr. Gehlot said, while urging the people to the vote for the Congress to facilitate the execution of welfare schemes. After attending Dussehra festivities in his hometown of Jodhpur on Wednesday evening, Mr. Gehlot will visit Raipur in Bhilwara district on Thursday to lay the foundation stone for a 220 KV power grid sub-station.
Also read: Congress government to complete full term in Rajasthan: Gehlot
Though Mr. Gehlot has clearly outsmarted both Congress president Sonia Gandhi and his own arch rival Sachin Pilot, the political situation in the State still remains uncertain. “On September 25, Mr. Gehlot was not only the outgoing Chief Minister, he was also in a way to being the Congress president designate. Which MLA would want to challenge his authority at such a state?” a MLA who proclaims his neutrality from the two warring camps said.
Many in the central leadership too feel that action should be taken against Mr. Gehlot for undermining the “institution” of Congress president. “The decision to pick the next Rajasthan Chief Minister after Mr. Gehlot was the last one Sonia Gandhi would have taken as the president of the party. Mr. Gehlot denied her of this chance. Also, the events of September 25 events have set a bad precedent, throwing the Congress president’s office up for challenge,” a Lok Sabha MP said. Speculation is rife that the Rajasthan question will be settled after October 19, when the new party president takes over.
The Gehlot camp, however, continues to be confident that the Chief Minister’s writ will prevail. “He has already been punished. He publicly apologised, which is a big thing. And secondly, he missed out on the historic opportunity to be Congress president. So he has already paid a hefty price. It’s unlikely, that he will be asked to leave his chair now, when things have just about settled,” a Rajasthan leader said.
Meanwhile, Mr. Pilot is busy mending his relationships. On Monday night, he visited Cabinet Minister Pratap Singh Kachariyawas, who has been a vociferous advocate for Mr. Gehlot in the current crisis.
