JAIPUR: Opening up a settled political chapter ahead of internal organizational transitions, former Rajasthan Chief Minister Shri Ashok Gehlot has claimed that the dramatic legislative standoff of September 25, 2022, was not an act of defiance against the Congress high command. Instead, Gehlot asserted it was a targeted rebellion by over 100 loyalist MLAs against the prospective elevation of his former deputy, Shri Sachin Pilot, to the state’s top post.
Gehlot urged Pilot to adopt a “forgive and forget” approach, while simultaneously claiming that the narrative surrounding the crisis was distorted to create a false perception that he had challenged the authority of the central leadership.
The Anatomy of the 2022 Dispute
The controversy stems from a aborted Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting called in Jaipur in September 2022. At the time, Gehlot was the frontrunner to contest the Congress presidential election, and the central leadership had dispatched observers—including current party chief Mallikarjun Kharge—to oversee a transition of power in Rajasthan. However, dozens of MLAs loyal to Gehlot boycotted the official meeting, holding a parallel assembly and submitting mass resignations to oppose Pilot’s appointment.
Defending the actions of his loyalist legislators, Gehlot stated that the MLAs were unwilling to accept a leader who had previously led a rebellion in Manesar (Haryana) in 2020 to threaten the stability of the Congress government:
“The September 25 episode was against the person whose name was doing the rounds to be sworn in as the next Chief Minister, Pilot sahab. A situation was created where 100 MLAs got together and they said, ‘Make any one of us the Chief Minister. We stuck by the party and saved this government, but we cannot have someone who went to Manesar and tried to topple our government.’ This was misrepresented as a revolt against the high command.” — Ashok Gehlot
Gehlot argued that the high command’s decision to let him finish his term as Chief Minister proved there was no central defiance. “If I had revolted against the high command, would I have been allowed to continue as Chief Minister?” he questioned.
Pushkar Camp Absence Triggers Leadership Buzz
Gehlot’s comments come immediately after a 10-day Congress national training and strategy camp held under the Sangathan Srijan Abhigyan in Pushkar, which concluded on June 1. While Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi spent hours at the camp emphasizing grassroots teamwork, Gehlot was noticeably absent from the core sessions.
Though sources within the Gehlot camp maintained his absence was strictly due to ill health after a brief meeting with Gandhi at the airport, the political vacuum has fueled immense speculation. With the term of the current Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) President Govind Singh Dotasara coming to a close, rumors have intensified that the central high command is preparing to hand the organizational reins of the state unit back to Sachin Pilot to prepare for the 2028 assembly polls.
The Pilot Camp Standpoint: While Sachin Pilot has withheld formal public comments on Gehlot’s remarks, sources close to the former Deputy Chief Minister indicated that the structural events of 2022 were fully documented by central observers, leaving no requirement for further public explanations.
Plea for Internal Accord
Recalling his multi-decade political association with the Pilot family, Gehlot remarked that he has viewed Pilot with affection since the latter’s childhood. He noted that both Pilot and his own son, Vaibhav Gehlot, grew up together when their fathers served as Members of Parliament.
“I said forgive and forget… everyone can make mistakes. He made a mistake and he should admit it,” Gehlot concluded, adding that the state unit needs absolute structural cohesion to counter the ruling party’s regional strategies.
