New Delhi/Bhopal/ Jaipur: After winning fiercely fought battles with the Narendra Modi-led BJP in three crucial Hindi heartland states, the Congress on Thursday found itself stymied by an internal tussle between the party’s young and old guard.
After holding day-long marathon consultations with senior party leaders, including Sonia Gandhi, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi was finally able to announce late Thursday that veteran leader Kamal Nath would be the 18th chief minister of Madhya Pradesh.
Mr Nath is scheduled to take oath as chief minister on Monday, December 17, at 1.30 pm. The race for the post of chief ministership in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, however, remains open.
In Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, a seasoned political manager, is the leadership’s favourite, but state Congress chief Sachin Pilot is not giving up without a fight.
Mr Pilot, 41, believes that after leading the party for the past four years in the state and rebuilding it after the Congress’ 2013 rout, he has earned his spurs and deserves to be Rajsathan’s chief minister.
As hours went by on Thursday without an announcement, tension and sloganeering rose among supporters of various contenders, spilling into violence in some areas of Rajasthan.
The 2019 general elections have a huge bearing on the decision of who becomes the chief minister of these three states, which together account for 65 Lok Sabha seats.
The Congress wants its experienced hands to play a big role in the heartland states, but without upsetting the younger leaders or risking any rebellion.
The Congress won a wafer-thin majority in both Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, which made the decision even more critical.
Mr Gandhi’s official residence in Delhi became a revolving door on Thursday as four main chief ministerial claimants from MP and Rajasthan, as well as AICC observers for the three states, made repeated visits to hold several rounds of discussions.
Sensing that the time being taken to announce the names of the chief ministers was turning the Congress’ sweet victory sour, Mr Gandhi on Thursday evening tweeted a photo with Mr Nath and Jyotiraditya Scindia smiling and arms linked in harmony. He quoted Leo Tolstoy to caption the photo: “The two most powerful warriors are patience and time.”
The same photo appeared on Mr Scindia’s Twitter timeline with a different caption: “It is not a race, it is not about the kursi (post), we are here to serve the people of Madhya Pradesh.”
Mr Nath, who was sent as state unit chief in June last year with a view to bolster the party’s chances, is needed in the state because the Congress emerged as the largest party but touched majority only with support from Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
He enjoys support in the entire state, especially of former chief minister and senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh who has been tacitly backing him. Mr Nath and Mr Singh will be influential in securing seats for the party in Lok Sabha elections.
Mr Scindia’s influence, on the other hand, is limited to the Gwalior division and adjoining areas. Sources said that he graciously accepted the decision to make Mr Nath chief minister.
Rajasthan, however, is proving to be more difficult.
Mr Gehlot and Mr Pilot were the first ones to reach Mr Gandhi’s residence on Thursday, along with observer K.C. Venugopal and general secretary in-charge of Rajasthan, Avinash Pande.
Mr Gandhi held individual meetings with them and joint meetings. The parleys were such that once Mr Gehlot had to be called back from the airport to attend another round of meetings.
Mr Gehlot is a key strategist and has been acceptable in all castes equations in the state. In fact, two Independents have spoken openly about supporting his candidature.
Mr Pilot, on the other hand, is a Gujjar leader and may upset the caste balance in the state. But Mr Pilot’s supporters have been aggressive in backing his candidature. They blocked roads and burnt tyres on Thursday, forcing Mr Pilot to issue an appeal for peace.
The decision in Rajasthan was pending when Mr Gandhi once again summoned him to his residence on Delhi’s Tughlak Road at 10:30 pm, ostensibly to broker truce.
This is Mr Gandhi’s first real test of leadership within the Congress since he took over the party’s reins from his mother a year ago.
On Thursday morning, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, responding to a question on who were the chief ministers, said, “I don’t know who will be chief minister, ask Rahul.”
During the day, as Mr Gandhi held discussions with leaders as well his mother and sister Priyanks to make up his mind, in a sign of, perhaps, political naivety but also true democracy, he sought views of party workers through an internal messaging system with a pre-recorded message. It asked them to send their views directly to him through the phone app.
