Sachin Pilot Arrives In Delhi After Defying Congress's 'Anti-Party' Warning Over Corruption Row

Defying the orders of his own party, senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot reached Delhi on Wednesday after observing a fast in Jaipur pressing the Ashok Gehlot government to act upon the corruption charges under the previous Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in Rajasthan.

There was speculation that he might meet the party's AICC in-charge of Rajasthan Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and other senior leaders, but sources close to Pilot said no meetings were fixed.

Pilot's day-long fast on Tuesday from 11 am to 4 pm drew a sharp reaction from the party leadership in Delhi that had previously warned that the move would be considered "anti-party". 

As he left the site where he held the fast in Jaipur, Pilot told reporters that Rahul Gandhi, the Congress and other opposition parties have united over corruption and financial irregularities, and claimed that his fast will speed up this movement.

The former deputy chief minister also said that he wrote two letters on this issue to Gehlot last year but received no reply.

"We had assured people that effective action will be taken against corruption by the former BJP government. I wanted the Congress government to take action but it has not happened in over four years," Pilot said.

However, Pilot's meeting with the party's central leadership in Delhi has not been scheduled yet, according to party sources, as reported by NDTV. 

Meanwhile, Gehlot has called for a press meeting today.

Both Gehlot and Pilot were keen on the chief minister's post when the party won in the state assembly elections in 2018. But the Congress high command picked Gehlot for the top post for a third time.

In July 2020, Pilot and a section of Congress MLAs had rebelled openly against Gehlot, demanding a change of leadership in the state. Pilot was then stripped of the posts of deputy chief minister and Pradesh Congress Committee president.

(with PTI inputs)