Sachin Pilot to lead Congress roadshow to amplify Vasundhara Raje controversy

NEW DELHI: The Congress plans to seek public support to put pressure on the Narendra Modi government to dismiss Vasundhara Raje as Rajasthan CM by invoking the prime minister’s election campaign statements against crony capitalism and black money. The opposition move comes even as the BJP has sought to shield Raje from allegations over her business ties with Lalit Modi and in helping to extend the former Indian Premier League commissioner’s stay in London.

Congress now plans to make the controversy surrounding Raje-Lalit Modi deal an issue of black money and crony capitalism in the eyes of common masses, and amplify the alleged breach of public trust by contrasting Modi’s electoral promises with BJP’s legal-technical defence of Raje.

“Having promised to act as the custodian of political morality in the country, this issue exposed how crony capitalism is given patronage right under the nose of the prime minister,” said Sachin Pilot, Congress’ Rajasthan unit chief. “His promises to be ‘chowkidar’ of public trust runs contrary to his deafening silence on Lalit Modi controversy,” he told ET.

Pilot said Raje broke public trust by endorsing Lalit Modi’s immigration application in the UK.

To make it a mass issue in the state, Pilot plans to get Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi to visit the state ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament late next month.

Pilot himself plans to visit 10 districts of the state in next few days to take the issue beyond TV studios even as his party will continue collecting and exposing more dirt around Raje.

He may also petition state governor as well as the President subsequently to keep the issue alive.

“In his electoral campaign, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised that ‘na khaunga, na khane dunga’, will act as a ‘chowkidar’ of public trust, and will observe zero tolerance towards corruption. All these claims are falling apart in this episode,” Pilot said.

He demanded that Modi must wield his influence over the BJP to honour his promise to the electorate. “The prime minister cannot have two sets of laws – one for influential people in the BJP like Raje and other for ordinary people.”