War of words in Rajasthan Congress: Rajasthan Congress in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa on Saturday (June 24) said that he has asked Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot to ‘call his ministers and control them’ while also suggesting to debar his ministerial colleagues from passing remarks against each other.
Randhawa said that it is the responsibility of the chief minister to control his ministers.
His remarks came in the wake of Food and Civil Supplies Minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas slamming his ministerial colleague and Urban Development Minister Shanti Dhariwal for putting the blame over the pace of smart city work on the Jaipur legislators and ministers.
'Will look into it at party level'
The state Congress in-charge said that he would look into the matter at the party level.
"I have asked the chief minister to call his ministers and control them. I will look into it at the party level. It is the chief minister's responsibility as far as the government and ministers giving statements against each other are concerned," he told reporters.
Randhawa also added that it was the ministers’ responsibility to strengthen the government and not make remarks against one another.
What Minister Shanti Dhariwal alleged
Dhariwal at a programme in Udaipur on Thursday alleged that six legislators and three ministers from Jaipur were for the lagging development work.
“The smart city mission was started in four cities of Rajasthan – Kota, Jaipur, Ajmer, and Udaipur – but the pace of work was slow in the state capital because of the local MLAs and ministers having issues among them,” the minister alleged.
Meanwhile, Khachariyawas who is an MLA from Jaipur's civil lines seat retorted to his statement and sought his apology for his remark and the kind of language used.
He stepped up the attack on Dhariwal and sought to know if he was a BJP worker and if he considered Assam Governor Gulab Chand Kataria as his leader.
Khachariyawas was apparently referring to Kataria's presence at the programme in Udaipur which Dhariwal attended.
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War of words in Rajasthan Congress in the election year
The war of words among the Congress leaders in Rajasthan comes months ahead of the state Assembly polls. The Congress party is looking to retain power in the state while the BJP is aiming to make its way back to power.
However, the apparent differences between Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his former Deputy Sachin Pilot, who has questioned Gehlot on numerous occasions in the recent past regarding his non-action against the leaders of the previous BJP government accused of corruption, is very much out in the open.
With Rajasthan going to the Assembly polls in a few months' time, the Congress party is reeling under the issue of an apparent internal war of words.
(With PTI inputs)
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