Jaipur, Apr 13 (PTI) Two days after former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje clarified that her “mine is gone, I could not save it” remark was completely taken out of context by conspirators, senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Monday said she need not have explained.
He also reacted to BJP state president Madan Rathore’s comment that “no single individual needs to be the chief minister every time”, saying that such remarks should have been best left to the prime minister or the BJP national president. During a public meeting in Jhalawar on Friday, when some attendees approached Raje for assistance, she had said, “Bhaiya mera hi chala gaya. Main apna nahi bacha saki aur tum keh rahe ho ki…. (I lost mine. I could not save my own situation.) Raje was seen as a frontrunner for a third term as chief minister after the BJP returned to power in Rajasthan in December 2023, but the party selected first-time MLA Bhajanlal Sharma for the post. Her recent comment was perceived as a disappointment over this.
Responding to Raje’s comment the same day, Rathore suggested that no single individual needs to be the chief minister every time.
However, Raje on Saturday clarified that her remarks had no connection to any political position and it was completely taken out of context by conspirators.
Gehlot on Monday said Raje did not need to explain.
“I do not want to comment on the internal matters of her party, but the way the BJP state president spoke reflected a different approach in both language and conduct,” Gehlot told reporters here.
“Personally, he (Rathore) is a good person, and we share a cordial relation. But no one knows what he may say under party pressure,” the Congress leader said.
“Whether the comment is about Vasundhara ji or about us, does any PCC or BJP state president say ‘will she become chief minister again and again?’ Such remarks should have been best left to the prime minister or the BJP’s national president,” he said, adding that however, it is their party matter.
Reiterating that Raje need not have clarified her position, Gehlot said people understand her intent and the context in which she spoke, and unnecessary comments were made on that.
“Vasundhara ji is saying something, Madan Rathore is saying something else. That is the situation of their party. They accuse the Congress of infighting, but their own situation has come out in the open,” he said.
He asserted that everyone in the Congress is united, exuding confidence that the party will form the next government in the state. PTI SDA RUK RUK
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