Pilot's Turbulence

High command is wary of making any radical changes to leadership so close to elections; Sachin Pilot, though, is growing impatient

- Soni Mishra

SEATED ON A small stage, occasionally resting his elbows on an old-fashioned wooden half table, Sachin Pilot was a picture of calm. The space in the middle of Shaheed Smarak, a war memorial in Jaipur, was an oasis of quiet; outside it was an excited crowd of supporters who launched into cheers at regular intervals.

This was the “controversial” anshan (fast) that Pilot held against the alleged corruption in the previous Vasundhara Raje government, on April 11. It was the latest episode of the power tussle between Pilot and Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, which has become a major headache for the Congress’s central leadership.

Just days earlier, Pilot had held a news conference on the purported inaction of his party’s government against corruption. And now with the fast, it is evident that his real target is Gehlot.

The 45-year-old wants to come across as a crusader against corruption, emphasising the popular perception that Gehlot and Raje have helped each other and are two sides of the same coin.

That Pilot was alone on stage during his fast was intentional. It was to put the focus on him as an individual fighting the system. He wants to be seen as an alternative to Gehlot and Raje as chief ministers. The assembly elections are due in December.

At the protest site, Pilot was being portrayed as the chief minister Rajasthan deserves. Slogans of “Hamara CM kaisa ho, Sachin Pilot jaisa ho (Our chief minister should be like Sachin Pilot)” and “Sachin tum sangharsh karo, hum tumhare saath hain (Sachin, you keep fighting, we are with you)” were raised.