Sachin Pilot meets Rahul, Priyanka; Rajasthan crisis may have been averted

A terse statement by AICC Secretary KC Venugopal said Sachin Pilot has committed to working in the interest of the Congress party and the Congress government in Rajasthan

The logjam in the Congress’ Rajasthan unit has broken. Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister (CM) Sachin Pilot on Monday met Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra for the first time, since he raised the banner of rebellion against CM Ashok Gehlot. This comes just days ahead of the floor test on August 14.

A terse statement by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary KC Venugopal said Pilot had committed to work in the interest of the Congress party and the government in Rajasthan.

“Sachin Pilot has met with former Congress President Rahul Gandhi and expressed his grievances in detail. They have had a frank, open and conclusive discussion," the statement said.

"Following this meeting, party president Sonia Gandhi  decided that the AICC would constitute a three-member committee to address the issues raised by Sachin Pilot and the aggrieved MLAs and arrive at an appropriate resolution thereof," it added.

Pilot, who was stripped of his positions as Deputy CM and party chief in the state, came off worse in the power struggle. He might get the deputy CM's post back, something that Gehlot would concede in bad grace. If a face-saving compromise has to be reached, tough negotiations would be required as the trust deficit between the warring leaders has never been so high as it is in the current times.

Pilot's flock of 19 MLAs neither grew, nor diminished after his rebellion; however, if all the ‘dissident’ members make their peace with the Gehlot camp, Pilot would lose the support of a group that was broadly sympathetic to him.

One of the reasons for the aggrieved leader's meeting with Rahul Gandhi and overtures for a truce was that many of Pilot's MLAs were becoming restive, especially after the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) made it clear it would play no part in coming to their rescue. 

While the crisis seems to be over for now, the threat of another one in future still looms. It is unlikely that Pilot's ambition would stay contained, but the party brass might address the threat that he was facing from Gehlot's son, Vaibhav. The question is whether this will be enough for Pilot.