The story of Sachin Pilot, why didn’t Sonia Gandhi make him the CM of Rajasthan?

No response has yet come from the High Command on the whole matter. According to Congress sources, Priyanka Vadra can come forward to facilitate reconciliation between Pilot and Gehlot. According to media reports, the pilot is in touch with Priyanka Vadra. Even before this, Priyanka Vadra has made a reconciliation between the two.

There are many discussions in political circles regarding Pilot’s visit to Delhi after the fast. Pilot’s fast took place at a time when the state unit of the Congress had already told it against the interests of the party. The high command had also conveyed this message to Pilot and Ashok that both should resolve their issue internally.

Let us tell you that before coming to Delhi, Pilot staged a one-day dharna demanding action in corruption cases. Pilot claims that this corruption case is pending since the tenure of the Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government.

This time the pilot may have kept silence, but this silence of the pilot has created a stir in the political corridors from Jaipur to Delhi. Pilot’s supporters say that unlike other young leaders in Congress, Pilot has more qualities to become CM.

About 20 years ago, on February 10, 2002, on the birthday of father Rajesh Pilot, Sachin Pilot joined the Congress. Pilot became a part of the Congress in a farmer’s rally in Jaipur. During this, Ashok Gehlot was also present on the stage.

In the year 2004, after two full years, Sachin Pilot contested from Dausa Lok Sabha seat and won. Then the age of the pilot was 26 years. Till that time the pilots were not stinging in the eyes of Gehlot. 

Where did the estrangement begin 

In 2008, assembly elections were held in Rajasthan and Gehlot government was formed again. Whereas in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, Sachin Pilot contested the Lok Sabha elections from Ajmer and was made the Minister of State in the Manmohan Singh government. This was the time when differences started to crop up between Gehlot and Pilot.  Despite the rift, in 2013, Gehlot suggested Sachin to contest from the Ajmer seat. 

Pilot gets command of the party and the campaigning begins

In the 2013 assembly elections, BJP got 163 seats and Congress got only 21 seats. This was the worst performance of Congress in Rajasthan. The power of Rajasthan had gone into the hands of the BJP. 

In view of this defeat, the party high command made Sachin Pilot the president of the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee just before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. At that time the pilot was 36 years old. The Gehlot camp did not like this. This is where the infighting started in the party. 

Does the party high command trust Pilot?

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress could not win a single Lok Sabha seat from Rajasthan. Pilot himself had lost the election. Even after this defeat, the party high command kept faith in Pilot and made Gehlot in-charge of Gujarat before the assembly elections. The party thus hit two birds with one stone. 

By sidelining Gehlot and reposing faith in Pilot, the Congress was trying to ride two boats. The result of which proved very bitter for the pilot. 

Gehlot got the throne in place of Pilot

Due to the trust he got from the party high command, Pilot definitely showed his stamina in 2018. Under the leadership of Pilot, the Congress won the 2018 Rajasthan assembly elections with a majority. But the party high command gave the throne to Ashok Gehlot. 

Pilot was made the Deputy Chief Minister. This was the first time when Ashok Gehlot was directly challenged for the chief minister’s chair in Rajasthan. The political enmity between the two started from here and continues till now. 

In 2019, Pilot fiercely surrounded the Gehlot government of his own party on the issue of health and law and order. Due to which Ashok Gehlot sidelined the pilot. 

During that time also the party high command was inclined towards Sachin. Angry at not being made the chief minister, Pilot raised the alarm of rebellion against Gehlot, and along with his supporting MLAs camped in Manesar, Haryana.

Gehlot got heavy in this matter and by proving his majority in the House, he told Pilot his real stature. Since then till today, the tug of war between Pilot and Gehlot continues. 

Trusting Pilot, then why Congress is not giving the Chief Minister’s post

Sachin Pilot is considered the future of Congress in Rajasthan. There is no other leader as popular as Pilot in the entire state. But the other truth is that all the rebellions in the middle of the year 2020 have taken a heavy toll on the pilot. Due to the rebellion, Pilot could not get the support of many MLAs of the party. 

Will becoming CM spoil Pilot’s image

The reason behind not making Jankar Pilot the CM is that somewhere the Congress has already understood the fear of a setback to the party in the upcoming elections. It is also a dilemma for the party that Sachin Pilot is a popular face not only in the state but also in the country.

In such a situation, why should his image be tarnished by declaring him as the Chief Minister just before the elections. The party is worried that the game of the Congress in Rajasthan might get spoiled like in Punjab. 

Is the high command keen to take Pilot to the central level

According to a report by Moneycontrol, if experts are to be believed, the emotional card of Gehlot’s last election in the next assembly elections in Rajasthan can benefit the party. On the other hand, if the party keeps Gehlot confined to Rajasthan and takes Pilot to the central level, then it will benefit Congress along with Pilot. While Congress will get a face at the national level, Pilot will get a chance to work closely with the Gandhi family and the high command. 

Story of Sachin Pilot 

Sachin Pilot is the son of the late Rajesh Pilot. Rajesh Pilot was very close to Rajiv Gandhi. Rajesh Pilot left the Air Force and came into politics. Elected MP from Bharatpur in 1980 and elected MP from Dausa in 1984,1991,1996,1998 and 1999.

Became MP for 20 years. When Rajiv Gandhi became the Prime Minister in 1984, he made him the Minister of State for the Ground Floor. He died untimely in a road accident in 2000 at the age of 55. 

Sachin Pilot studied at St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi.  This was followed by Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania, and interned at the BBC and General Motors, but the death of his father pushed the junior pilot into politics. 

After the death of Rajesh Pilot, the Dausa Lok Sabha seat went to his wife Rama, who represented it between 2001 and 2004. 

In 2004, at the age of 26, Sachin Pilot contested his first election from Dausa and also won. Pilot became the youngest Lok Sabha MP of the country. In the same year he married Sarah Pilot, daughter of Jammu and Kashmir CM Farooq Abdullah and sister of Omar Abdullah, with whom they had two sons.

This post was handled by Sachin Pilot till October 2012. The then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reshuffled the cabinet and  Pilot was given the responsibility of Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Corporate Affairs.

The Congress performed dismally in the 2013 Rajasthan assembly elections. During that time the party had sent Pilot to brighten his fortunes in the state. According to some experts, Rajasthan is the crown of Pilot’s political career, where Gehlot has not yet allowed Pilot to grow.

Since 2018, Pilot has been making every possible effort to become the CM of Rajasthan. Apart from the MLAs supporting the Gehlot camp, Gehlot’s caste OBC Mali also works in his favor. Pilot is Gurjar.

This time war or across

Pilot Gehlot is trying to put the BJP in the dock along with the government, demanding an inquiry into the alleged corruption charges against former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. A symbolic fast was also done on Tuesday regarding this. Pilot’s aim is also to put pressure on the Gehlot government of the state on the pretext of fasting. On the other hand, a message has also been given to the high command sitting in Delhi to reach any decision.