Rajasthan: Gehlot wins trust vote

Gehlot’s prospects had improved after the truce with Pilot camp earlier this week

ashok gehlot pti Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot | PTI

In an expected result, the Ashok Gehlot government in Rajasthan won the vote of confidence in the Assembly on Friday. The motion of confidence moved by the Congress government was passed by voice vote, an expected win after the return of the 19 dissident MLAs led by Sachin Pilot to the party-fold.

Initial reports suggest that during the voice poll, 125 were in favour of Gehlot government, while 75 against it.

The house has been adjourned till August 21, said Assembly Speaker C.P. Joshi.

Replying to the debate on the motion, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot criticised the BJP, accusing it again of trying to bring down his government. "I will not let the government topple at any cost even if you make all attempts," he said.

During the debate, the opposition BJP accused the Gehlot camp of blaming it for the infighting within the Congress.

Sachin Pilot, who was sacked as deputy chief minister after he rebelled against Gehlot, intervened in the debate, saying he would fight for the party. During the debate, Deputy Leader of the Opposition Rajendra Rathore mentioned Pilot's name in various matters, including the recent political developments in the state and a Special Operations Group (SOG) notice issued to him.

The notice was sent to Pilot after the Rajasthan Police claimed to have stumbled upon a plot to topple the Congress government.

"They are taking my name repeatedly. Prior to my seat being changed, I was safe and part of the government. Then I thought why our Speaker and chief whip have given me a seat here? I thought for two minutes and then saw that this is a border.

"On one side is the ruling party and on the other is the Opposition. Who is sent to the border? The strongest warrior is sent," Pilot said, interrupting Rathore.

Gehlot had called for the special session of the Assembly last month as the political standoff with Sachin Pilot and 18 of his loyalist MLAs played out.

The prospects for Gehlot's government had improved considerably after the Congress High Command orchestrated a truce between the Pilot and Gehlot factions earlier this week.

Pilot had led a rebellion against Gehlot, seeking a change in the party's leadership in Rajasthan. At the CLP meeting held at his residence on Thursday, Gehlot urged Congress MLAs to forget the acrimony of the past month and move on. The victory in the floor test gives Gehlot an ‘immunity’ of six months. In fact, the perception is that Gehlot wanted a vote of confidence to buy the Congress time to reconcile differences between the factions.

The Congress has 107 MLAs, including six who had merged from the BSP, in the 200-member assembly.

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