JAIPUR: Two days after AICC general secretary KC Venugopal claimed that all was well in Rajasthan Congress, the party’s in-charge for the state, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, had to urge Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday to stop the rising incidents of public bickering among the ministers and MLAs.
The latest round of verbal spat among Congress leaders was triggered by urban development and housing (UDH) minister Shanti Dhariwal, who on Thursday publicly blamed his cabinet colleagues and MLAs from Jaipur for the city’s slow pace of development, earning sharp rebuttal from food and civil supplies minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas a day later. Khachariyawas hit back at Dhariwal and accused him of conspiring to defeat Congress with his “thoughtless statements” in the election year.
Reacting to the bickering, Randhawa told the media on Saturday, “I have asked the chief minister to call his ministers and control them. I will also look into the matter at the party level. It is the chief minister’s responsibility as far as the government and the ministers giving statements against one another is concerned.” TNN
The statement created an impact on the ministers concerned as they started playing down the issue or refused to react to it further. Khachariyawas told TOI, “Randhawaji is right when he said that ministers should refrain from making statements against one another.
I have met him and assured him that every word of his will be followed by me, and the issue is over from my end.” Khachariyawas also met Randhawa while the latter was leaving for Delhi. “I have told our party incharge that he should remind some ministers who claim to be seniors to not damage the party,” added Khachriyawas.
TOI repeatedly called Dhariwal for his comments, but he did not respond. Sources said he was not taking queries from the media on the matter. State Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra said, “Our ministers are experienced and understand the damage the party can suffer if they continue to take on one another in public.
Our party has internal democracy and provides complete freedom to all to express their views and even differences. But if they take the differences to the public domain, they are acting against the trust the party reposes in them.” This is not the first time the Congress in-charge has taken up the matter with CM Gehlot and the central leaders.
A section of the party’s leaders expressed disappointment that such incidents that dilute the government’s hard work get away without any action. On Friday, MLA Bharat Singh not only resigned from the state wildlife board but also made public his resignation letter, in which he accused Gehlot of shielding the corrupt.
Last month, Dotasra and former minister Rajendra Pareek were involved in a heated argument during an official meeting presided over by industries minister Shakuntla Rawat in Sikar. “Our party is governed by rules and has a detailed constitution with specified provisions against all kinds of indiscipline.
These rules are never put into practice when it comes to acting against ministers or senior leaders,” said a senior Congress leader requesting anonymity.
The latest round of verbal spat among Congress leaders was triggered by urban development and housing (UDH) minister Shanti Dhariwal, who on Thursday publicly blamed his cabinet colleagues and MLAs from Jaipur for the city’s slow pace of development, earning sharp rebuttal from food and civil supplies minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas a day later. Khachariyawas hit back at Dhariwal and accused him of conspiring to defeat Congress with his “thoughtless statements” in the election year.
Reacting to the bickering, Randhawa told the media on Saturday, “I have asked the chief minister to call his ministers and control them. I will also look into the matter at the party level. It is the chief minister’s responsibility as far as the government and the ministers giving statements against one another is concerned.” TNN
The statement created an impact on the ministers concerned as they started playing down the issue or refused to react to it further. Khachariyawas told TOI, “Randhawaji is right when he said that ministers should refrain from making statements against one another.
I have met him and assured him that every word of his will be followed by me, and the issue is over from my end.” Khachariyawas also met Randhawa while the latter was leaving for Delhi. “I have told our party incharge that he should remind some ministers who claim to be seniors to not damage the party,” added Khachriyawas.
TOI repeatedly called Dhariwal for his comments, but he did not respond. Sources said he was not taking queries from the media on the matter. State Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra said, “Our ministers are experienced and understand the damage the party can suffer if they continue to take on one another in public.
Our party has internal democracy and provides complete freedom to all to express their views and even differences. But if they take the differences to the public domain, they are acting against the trust the party reposes in them.” This is not the first time the Congress in-charge has taken up the matter with CM Gehlot and the central leaders.
A section of the party’s leaders expressed disappointment that such incidents that dilute the government’s hard work get away without any action. On Friday, MLA Bharat Singh not only resigned from the state wildlife board but also made public his resignation letter, in which he accused Gehlot of shielding the corrupt.
Last month, Dotasra and former minister Rajendra Pareek were involved in a heated argument during an official meeting presided over by industries minister Shakuntla Rawat in Sikar. “Our party is governed by rules and has a detailed constitution with specified provisions against all kinds of indiscipline.
These rules are never put into practice when it comes to acting against ministers or senior leaders,” said a senior Congress leader requesting anonymity.
