In the latest twist to Congress' long-running feud between its two key figures Ashok Gehlot & Sachin Pilot, a minister in India's Rajasthan government has demanded the State Chief (Gehlot) be sacked immediately.
"The party came to power because of Sachin Pilot; considering the hard work done by him, and he should be given the responsibility," Choudhary, who is a known loyalist of Pilot, told reporters in Jaipur on Monday.
He further added that Pilot should no longer be kept waiting and his promotion as the Rajasthan State Chief should be made immediately.
His demand comes weeks after Pilot urged the Congress' central leadership to act against legislators who sided with Gehlot during the party's crisis in the state in September. The tensions in the party surfaced after Gehlot, who is viewed as a Gandhi family loyalist, was reportedly asked to resign from his post so that he could contest the party's presidential polls.
Just when Gehlot's successor was to be picked in a key meeting, more than 90 lawmakers close to him resigned, leaving the party red-faced.
Last week, former federal cabinet minister Ajay Maken stepped down as party leader in India's Rajasthan state, reportedly on the same premise that the Congress' top leadership failed to take action against Gehlot and his loyalist lawmakers who defied the party's orders during the crisis.
With the next elections in Rajasthan due in a year, the public rift between their top two leaders, Gehlot and Pilot, doesn't seem to bode well for the Congress. But the party appears unwilling to accommodate Pilot's demands as Gehlot is supported by more than three-fourths of the Congress legislators in the state.
Pilot, meanwhile, continues to rake up the issue as he's reportedly feeling marginalized as he no longer holds any party post in the state.
The politician was earlier Congress' Rajasthan President and Deputy State Chief before being sacked from those roles in 2020.