Interview/ Govind Singh Dotasra, Rajasthan Congress president
THE CONGRESS MIGHT have lost the assembly elections in Rajasthan a few months ago, but the state party president Govind Singh Dotasra claims that the Lok Sabha polls will be different because voters are already disappointed by the Bhajan Lal Sharma government. Excerpts from an interview:
Q/ Can there be a turnaround for the Congress in the Lok Sabha elections?
A/ It is true we did not succeed in bucking the tradition of Rajasthan voting out the incumbent. But our vote share actually increased and that proves the continued faith of the people in the Congress. In the past few months, the people of Rajasthan could see that the Bhajan Lal Sharma government was not empathetic to the concerns of the people. They are already talking about the difference between our government and the current government. They have discontinued the health insurance scheme that we had brought in. They are implementing Ayushman Bharat in the state instead. They are shutting down English medium schools we had opened for poor children.
Q/ Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the BJP’s mascot in the assembly elections. He will play a bigger part in the campaign for the Lok Sabha polls. How will you counter that?
A/ The BJP talks about ‘Modi ki Guarantee’. Thousands of crores of rupees are being spent on ads that publicise ‘Modi ki Guarantee’. But the people want to ask him about the promises he made in 2014 and that remain unfulfilled, be it controlling price rise or providing jobs or doubling the income of farmers. Petrol and diesel prices are sky-rocketing. They betrayed the people of Rajasthan on the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project. They talked so much about paper leaks in Rajasthan. Now, a shocking paper leak in the constable recruitment examination has taken place in Uttar Pradesh, which is under BJP rule.
Q/ Are senior leaders shying away from contesting the Lok Sabha elections?
A/ That is not true. Brijendra Ola and Uday Lal Anjana, who have been MLAs for many terms, are contesting the Lok Sabha elections. So is Rahul Kaswan, who is a two-time MP. Many senior leaders are in the fray.
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Q/ Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot and former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot were expected to contest.
A/ It is Gehlot ji’s personal choice. His son Vaibhav is contesting from Jalaur. Pilot ji has organisational responsibilities.
Q/ Many leaders quit the Congress in Rajasthan recently and have joined the BJP. Has that not weakened the party?
A/ The BJP would earlier attack leaders such as Rajendra Yadav and Lal Chand Kataria for alleged corruption. Now, the same leaders have been welcomed by the BJP. Similarly, Subhash Garg of the RLD was attacked by the BJP over his alleged involvement in paper leaks. Now the RLD has joined hands with the BJP. The BJP has used pressure tactics to get leaders to join the party. The investigating agencies have been misused to target opposition leaders, and when the same leaders join the BJP, they do not have any blemish. But it is wrong to say that we have been weakened because some leaders have left. Many of them would not have been given Lok Sabha tickets anyway.