Good English and being handsome isn't everything: Gehlot's dig at Pilot

Speaking good English and being handsome isn’t everything, said Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday (July 15), in a dig at his former deputy Sachin Pilot, who was sacked from cabinet and party posts on Tuesday for rebelling against the dispensation.

“Speaking good English, giving good bytes and being handsome isn’t everything. What is inside your heart for the country, your ideology, policies, and commitment, everything is considered,” the chief minister told reporters in Jaipur on Wednesday.

The crisis in Rajasthan, a fallout of Pilot’s rebellion claiming the support of 30 Congress MLAs, seems to have blown over. Meanwhile, addressing the media, the chief minister also shot barbs at the “new generation”, though he stopped short of naming Pilot.

“I have been in politics for 40 years, we love the new generation, the future will be theirs. This new generation, they have become central ministers, state presidents if they had gone through what we did in our time, they would have understood,” he further said.

The Gehlot-led Congress government claims the support of 106 MLAs, well past the halfway mark required to prove majority in the 200-seat assembly.

Gehlot further accused Pilot of involving in horse-trading with the BJP and said the “former Pradesh Congress Committee president” was himself “doing the deal”. Gehlot said he has the proof that horse trading was being committed to topple his government.

Related news: Doors of party still open for Pilot: Rajasthan Congress chief

“Horse trading was being done in Jaipur, we have the proof. We had to keep people at a hotel for 10 days. If we had not done that, the same thing that is happening in Manesar now would have happened back then,” Chief Minister Gehlot said.

“Those who are giving clarifications were themselves involved in horse trading.” Gehlot said he (Pilot) would have performed quite good had he “struggled in his youth”. He also slammed the national media saying it is supporting those “involved in murdering democracy.”

(With inputs from agencies)