Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday accused Sachin Pilot of trying to blackmail the Congress and hobnobbing with the BJP, saying that the party was left with no option but to act against him after he refused to heed their efforts to reach out to him.
“Full opportunity was given to him to come and resolve differences. We called a CLP meeting again today to give him a chance to come and talk. But it is clear that he and other MLAs played into the hands of the BJP,” Gehlot told reporters in his first remarks after the action against Pilot and his close associates was announced.
Gehlot said the BJP’s involvement in the recent developments was clear and claimed that the saffron party was playing a role in keeping rebel MLAs in a resort and managing their affairs.
“It is sad that at a time like this, when we are fighting COVID, efforts are being made to topple an elected government,” he said.
The Chief Minister said that Pilot had been displaying an adversarial attitude towards the government, especially over the last three to six months.
“No one is happy while taking such action. But the party was left with no option,” Gehlot said as he accused Pilot of hobnobbing with the BJP.
Referring to speculation that Pilot could form a new party, he questioned if his ex-deputy had two-thirds of the party MLAs with him to be able to break away without attracting action against him.
Immediately after the CLP meeting, Gehlot headed to the Governor’s house to present to him the letters of support from the MLAs backing his government.
As his government totters on the brink, with the number of MLAs in the Gehlot camp reducing to barely the majority mark of a hundred, demands are being made by the BJP as also the Pilot camp that he should prove his numbers on the floor of the house.
