Trouble for the Congress high command?

Number 10 Janpath, the New Delhi power centre of the Congress triumvirate Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, has faced many embarrassments in recent times but of late Rajasthan came as the worst of all. This earthquake of sorts was engineered by their loyalist number one Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, who proved that a strong state leadership can challenge the party high command.

- Neelu Vyas

More than 100 MLAs from the Gehlot camp raised their voices in unison just because the high command wanted to impose Sachin Pilot as the CM of the desert state.

While Mr Gehlot's lieutenants, Shantilal Dhariwal, Mahesh Joshi and Dharmendra Rathore have been served show cause notices, the principal conspirator Ashok Gehlot has been given a clean chit, which shows that the Congress high command dare not touch him.

Ashok Gehlot after meeting Sonia Gandhi publicly said sorry but this was a masterstroke to save his turf and establish his supremacy as the tallest Congress leader in the cow belt. What many would perceive as an ignominious climbdown is actually an unprecedented challenge mounted by Mr Gehlot against the high command. Why else would he resign from his political base and hand over the turf to his rival Sachin Pilot only to become the party president, a post which would not have the old glamour as long as the Gandhis hold the remote control? It would have been political suicide by Mr Gehlot.