Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has urged Congress leadership to finalise candidates at least two months ahead of elections so that workers and leaders do not have to waste energy and resources “doing rounds of Delhi” to seek party nominations.
Addressing a meeting of Youth Congress workers in Jaipur on Thursday, Gehlot said that “if both leaders and workers get exhausted traveling to Delhi, how will they prepare for elections.”
“We need to change this system. At least we should tell the candidates unofficially of their candidature so that they get an early start”, he added.
Gehlot’s statement comes in the midst of festering factionalism in the Rajasthan Congress with former deputy CM Sachin Pilot holding protests seeking investigations into allegations of corruption against the Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government in Rajasthan.
With elections just around the corner, top leaders in the party have been jostling to win nominations for their supporters.
In the 2018 assembly polls, ticket distribution in the Rajasthan Congress was delayed as Pilot- the then state Congress president- and Gehlot sparred over ticket distribution.
Gehlot who was then working as the AICC general secretary in charge of the organization sought to contest from his traditional Sardarpura seat in Jodhpur. While a counter-argument was posed whether leaders holding posts in AICC should be contesting assembly polls.
Gehlot finally got the nomination, retained Sardarpura, and went on to become the state chief minister for the third time.