Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Khelat said on Thursday that he will not contest the upcoming Congress chief election. Ashok Khelat announced his decision after meeting party president Sonia Gandhi at her residence.
The meeting comes amid speculation that Ashok Khelat will file a nomination for Congress president post the crisis in Rajasthan. Ashok Khelat arrived at Sonia Gandhi’s residence ahead of the scheduled meeting time.
Speaking to reporters, Ashok Khelat said that he has always been a disciplined soldier of the Congress and that he will not contest the president election in view of the recent events in Rajasthan.
“It is my moral responsibility that the resolution (in the meeting of party legislators) should have been passed. So in this situation I have decided that I (Party President) will not contest the election. This is my decision,” Ashok Khelat said after the meeting.
Asked whether he will continue as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Ashok Khelat said Sonia Gandhi will take a decision on the matter. Ashok Khelat also said that I have expressed my grief to Sonia Gandhi for the events in Rajasthan.
Earlier, speaking to the media, Ashok Khelat said that the internal problems within the party before the elections would be resolved soon. He said the party has internal discipline, which has helped it “sustain the decline in Lok Sabha numbers” and that it continues to be a national party. Ashok Khelat also said that there is discipline in the party under the leadership of Soniaji.
On Sunday, MLAs supporting Ashok Khelat skipped the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting convened by the party leadership and asked Assembly Speaker C.P. submitted their resignation letters to Joshi. While MLAs on the Chief Minister’s side have been vocal, those in the Sachin Pilot camp have yet to publicly comment on the conflict. The Congress on Tuesday issued show cause notices to Ashok Khelat loyalists Shanti Dhariwal, Mahesh Joshi and Dharmendra Rathore.
With the deadline for filing nominations on Friday, Congress leaders are engaged in heated debates to resolve the political confusion over who will contest the party president’s election.
Meanwhile, in a new twist to the Congress president election saga, senior party leader Digvijaya Singh has confirmed that he is contesting for the post of Congress president.
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