Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday, preparing Congress MLAs supporting him for a long haul, asked them to be ready to stay at the luxury resort for 21 days, the time Governor Kalraj Mishra might take to convene the Assembly session.
Congress is set to take the protests against the BJP nationwide on Monday, with Gehlot asserting that he might lay siege to the Rashtrapati Bhavan and the prime minister’s residence if required.
Amid the crisis, Congress workers hit the streets across Rajasthan on Saturday, staging protests against BJP’s “conspiracy to murder democracy”, with large number of activists turning up in Dausa, the stronghold of rebel leader Sachin Pilot.
“All PCCs will hold protests in front of the Raj Bhawans in their respective states on Monday at 11:00 a.m. demanding to ‘Save Democracy- Save Constitution and exposing the anti-democratic and anti-constitutional actions of the BJP,” AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal said in a statement.
Addressing MLAs in Jaipur, Gehlot asked them to remain united and stay strong and at the same time cautioning them that they may have to stay in the hotel for 21 days, the minimum days notice required to convene the Assembly session.
“The majority is with us,” the Chief Minister told the MLAs at Hotel Fairmont, where they have been staying since July 12, when Pilot rebelled against Gehlot.
A day after Gehlot and MLAs supporting him staged protests on Raj Bhawan lawns, a BJP delegation called on Governor Kalraj Mishra to voice concerns over Gehlot’s remarks that his government will not be responsible if people surround the Raj Bhawan to protest against the delay in convening of the assembly session.
“The chief minister is the head of the state and he said that he will not be responsible for a breach in law and order situation. If not him, then who will be responsible? He should tender his resignation for using such language,” Leader of the Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly Gulab Chand Kataria said after meeting the Governor.
“This government is headed for a constitutional crisis,” Rajendra Singh Rathore, deputy leader of the BJP in the Rajasthan assembly told reporters after meeting the Governor.
Rathore, however, made it clear that the BJP was not seeking a floor test as it did not have the numbers required to form the government.
“The government is facing a crisis due to internal differences. You have a chief minister and a deputy chief minister who do not see eye to eye,” Rathore said, seeking to distance the BJP from the political crisis in Rajasthan.