Jaipur, Apr 27 (PTI): BJP Rajasthan in-charge Radha Mohan Das Agarwal slammed the Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Monday and questioned his political loyalty, saying that he keeps one foot in the party while the other rests somewhere else.
Congress leaders termed Agarwal’s comments as “highly objectionable” and demanded an apology.
During a programme in Tonk on Monday, Agarwal referred to Pilot, without naming him, as an “imposter,” and noted that the Tonk assembly constituency has a history of electing BJP legislators.
He alleged that the current representative is a “non-local.” “In Tonk, it has been a long-standing tradition that the MLA belongs to the BJP. Today, an imposter has become the MLA of Tonk. Surprisingly, he is neither a resident of Tonk nor of Rajasthan,” he said.
Agarwal compared himself to Pilot, saying, “I, too, hail from Uttar Pradesh and serve as the in-charge for Rajasthan; however, I would never dream of becoming an MLA here. I am not a fugitive from Uttar Pradesh and can conduct my politics from there. What kind of precedent has been established here? You accept anyone sent from any state and garland them.” He further questioned Pilot’s allegiance, asking, “To whom does he owe his loyalty? Not to his party, not to his chief minister, and not to his party workers. I fail to understand how you allowed him to become an MLA.” “He keeps one foot in the Congress party, and the other rests somewhere else. That is why our party president said that we will go to Tonk and we will tell our party workers, with a sense of challenge, that in the next assembly elections, the BJP candidate will emerge victorious from Tonk,” he said.
Responding to Agarwal’s remarks, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot asserted that both of Pilot’s feet are firmly planted in the Congress party, and will remain there.
Pilot, who served as deputy chief minister in Gehlot’s previous Congress government, had rebelled against Gehlot’s leadership in 2020, along with 18 other Congress MLAs. The rebellion led to a political crisis in the state, which was resolved through the intervention of party leadership. Gehlot had alleged that it was a conspiracy orchestrated by the BJP to topple his government, using Pilot and other MLAs as pawns.
Speaking to reporters here after arriving in Kolkata, Gehlot said that Pilot has learned the consequences of past mistakes and expressed confidence that the entire party supports him.
“He has realised what the consequences of making such mistakes are. He has now understood and corrected himself. I hope he will never leave us again, and the entire party stands united with him,” Gehlot said.
Rajasthan Pradesh Congress committee president Govind Singh Dotasra termed the remarks made by Agarwal as “indecent” and reflective of a declining political culture.
Dotasra said the comments were not only objectionable but also indicative of the BJP’s deteriorating standards in public discourse.
“There can be political opposition, but not personal animosity,” he said.
“Personal attacks and breach of decorum have become habitual for the BJP,” he said.
The Congress leader said the BJP leadership should take note of the conduct of its functionaries and ensure restraint in public statements. He also demanded an apology from Agarwal.
Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan assembly Tika Ram Jully also criticised the BJP leader’s comments, calling them “highly objectionable” and reflective of a low level of politics.
Jully alleged that the BJP was resorting to personal attacks and using derogatory language instead of engaging in issue-based debates.
He said the party had abandoned its own stated principles and was indulging in politics of insult rather than dialogue.
He urged the BJP leadership to rein in its leaders and demanded a public apology from Agarwal over the remarks. PTI SDA HIG HIG
(This story is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. No editing has been done in the headline or the body by ABP Live.)
