BJP's Gajendra Singh Shekhawat took a swipe at the Gandhis over the Rajasthan crisis
Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has taken a swipe at the Gandhi family amid the unfolding political crisis in Congress-ruled Rajasthan, following the rebellion by Sachin Pilot and MLAs loyal to him.
Rajasthan Speaker CP Joshi has sent disqualification notices to the 19 rebel MLAs, including Sachin Pilot, for "anti-party activities".
"The whole country has paid the price for keeping a family happy," Union Minister and BJP MP from Jodhpur Gajendra Singh Shekhawat tweeted this morning.
Sachin Pilot repeatedly asked to be made Chief Minister of Rajasthan within one year and refused to meet with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and son Rahul Gandhi unless they were ready to accept his demand, sources close to party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said on Friday last.
The statement came as a rebuttal to one from Mr Pilot's camp that he was unceremoniously sacked as Deputy Chief Minister three hours after a phone conversation last week with Ms Vadra, who had been trying to convince the 42-year-old to walk back his mutiny.
Members of Mr Pilot's circle told NDTV that he was "aggrieved" at being sacked soon after the phone call with Ms Vadra - among the many reach-outs by the Gandhis following his revolt against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.
The Rajasthan Speaker said today he had decided to go to the Supreme Court to avert "a constitutional crisis" and a confrontation with the judiciary on his powers. Speaker CP Joshi was asked yesterday by the Rajasthan High Court to pause action until its decision on Friday on the rebels' petition challenging disqualification notices served by him.
The BJP has 76 MLAs in the 200-member Rajasthan assembly and to form government, the party will need the support of at least 25 more MLAs. But the BJP is looking at an additional 10 MLAs as a buffer.