Congress Leaders' Outreach To Ashok Gehlot Amid Raging Crisis: 10 Facts

Senior Congress leaders Ambika Soni and Anand Sharma, after a meeting with interim president Sonia Gandhi, spoke with Ashok Gehlot to "resolve the crisis that has been created", sources said.  

Ashok Gehlot will meet with Congress president Sonia Gandhi soon and three or four leaders loyal to him will be "cautioned" for their role in organising the rebellion, said the sources.

Ashok Gehlot, 71, is "still in contention for the post of Congress president and not ruled out", top party sources told NDTV hours after reports said otherwise.

At the core of the rebellion is Mr Gehlot's refusal to give up the post of Rajasthan Chief Minister, which has annoyed the leadership. Mr Gehlot had agreed to quit as Chief Minister after Rahul Gandhi made it clear that he would not be allowed a double role, in line with the Congress's "one person, one post" policy. 

The transition in Rajasthan was to be formally announced at a meeting of MLAs at Mr Gehlot's home on Sunday. Only about 25 of 107 Congress MLAs showed up. Most MLAs attended a different meeting called by Shanti Dhariwal, a minister close to Mr Gehlot. They later threatened to resign if Mr Gehlot was replaced as Chief Minister by his rival Sachin Pilot, who rebelled in 2020 against him.

The MLAs openly defied the Gandhis and laid out conditions that included choosing a new Chief Minister only after the Congress president election. If Mr Gehlot becomes Congress chief, that will constitute conflict of interest as he will have empowered himself to pick his own successor in Rajasthan.

Although three ministers close to him coordinated the rebellion, Mr Gehlot denied any part in it, citing his visit to a shrine near the India-Pakistan border that morning where there was no phone reception. "Nothing is in my hands. The MLAs are angry," he told the central leadership. 

No one in Delhi believed that 92 MLAs could threaten mass resignation without Mr Gehlot's active support and encouragement. Though Mr Gehlot has apologised, the Congress leadership has taken a "serious view" of indiscipline by one of its senior most leaders.

Sachin Pilot, whose supporters are outnumbered by Mr Gehlot's, reached Delhi this evening. It is not known yet whether he will meet with the leadership.

The Rajasthan crisis added to the turbulent build-up to the October 17 Congress president polls. For the first time in more than two decades, a Gandhi is not in the contest.