Hurt Congress finds solace in Sachin Pilot as he rejects BJP’s reported overtures

Days after Jitin Prasada’s exit, Congress heaved a sigh of relief as former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot on Friday rejected BJP’s reported overtures to him to shift political loyalties.

Pilot’s assertion also came on a day when BJP vice president Mukul Roy dumped the saffron party and returned to the Trinamool Congress, a development seen within the Congress as a beginning of a dent in the BJP ranks.

“Rita Bahuguna Joshi has said she has spoken to Sachin. She must have spoken to Sachin Tendulkar. She doesn’t have the guts to speak to me,” Pilot told reporters in Jaipur about Joshi’s reported overtures to him to join the BJP.

Joshi, a former Uttar Pradesh Congress President, joined the BJP in 2016 and was elected as an MLA in the 2017 Assembly elections. She served as a minister in the Uttar Pradesh government till her election to the Lok Sabha in 2019.

Read more: Jitin Prasada's exit opens Pandora’s box for Congress, leadership scrambles to address Sachin Pilot's concerns

Pilot has been upset with the Congress leadership for not fulfilling the assurances given to him last year when he had rebelled against Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

After Prasada’s exit from the Congress on Wednesday, rumour mills were agog about Pilot being the next to defect, particularly after he publicly reminded the party leadership about the promises made to him last year.

Reports had it that Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who had brokered peace between Pilot and Gehlot last year, reached out to Pilot with a fresh assurance on addressing his concerns.

AICC General Secretary Ajay Maken said he was in touch with Pilot on a regular basis and vacancies in the Rajasthan cabinet, boards and corporations would be filled soon.

As it struggled to put its house in order, the Congress rejoiced at a dent in the BJP ranks when its national vice president Mukul Roy made a surprise return to the Trinamool Congress.

“The BJP, which was poaching leaders from other parties, is now worried about saving its own house. Mukul Roy has embarked on a noble cause from Bengal. What Bengal thinks today, the country follows in that direction. Let us see how long the BJP would celebrate,” Roy said.