In a new overture ahead of Rajasthan Assembly elections CM Ashok Gehlot has signaled that relations between him and his party colleague Sachin Pilot are normal.
In a cryptic post on social media, Gehlots said: “together, winning again". The move by Gehlot seems to offer his former deputy and current rival, Sachin Pilot, an olive branch ahead of the next week's election.
A photograph shared by Gehlot, 72, showed the two in a meeting with others from the ruling Congress, including General Secretary KC Venugopal.
The post comes days before the state votes for a new government and after conciliatory comments by Pilot; on Tuesday he played down questions on the Gehlot-Pilot feud and dismissed reminders of acerbic barbs the two have exchanged over the past few years, including the 'nikamma' remark, reported NDTV.
"Leave it! Who said what? I can be responsible for what I said... we should maintain dignity in political discussions," Pilot, 46, was quoted by PTI as having said.
He also said Congress boss Mallikarjun Kharge had advised him to "forgive, forget, and move on."
Pilot, who will look to defend his Tonk seat, has also played down talk his rebellion of three years ago could affect his chances at being named Chief Minister, should the Congress retain power.
"I don't think it is a question of my chance, your chance or his chance. Right now we have to make sure the Congress party wins... tradition is that you fight elections... once you cross the majority mark, the MLAs and the leadership in Delhi will decide who will get what responsibility," he had
The Gehlot-Pilot feud - over the chief minister's post - broke soon after the Congress defeated the BJP in the 2018 election. It simmered for two years till Pilot and around 30 loyal MLAs walked out of Rajasthan and into BJP-ruled Haryana, sparking talk he was prepping to join the rival party.
Rajasthan is among the five states voting this month.
