Sachin Pilot reaches Delhi to meet Sonia Gandhi amid Rajasthan crisis

Senior party leader Sachin Pilot has arrived in Delhi to meet party chief Sonia Gandhi amid heavy turmoil in the Rajasthan unit of the Congress. Sources said that Pilot has sought time to meet Sonia Gandhi, which has not been given yet. Sources close to him said that no meeting has been fixed yet.

In Rajasthan, more than 90 MLAs are opposing the appointment of Sachin Pilot as the Chief Minister after Ashok Gehlot. All the MLAs had threatened to resign collectively. Sources have indicated that Ashok Gehlot is also likely to visit Delhi and meet Sonia Gandhi.

At the same time, party observers in their report submitted to party president Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday regarding the crisis in the Rajasthan unit of Congress have said that convening a separate meeting of MLAs parallel to the meeting of Congress Legislature Party is 'gross indiscipline'. For this, disciplinary action should be taken against three leaders including Chief Whip Mahesh Joshi.

Sources said that there is no direct reference to Chief Minister Gehlot in this report of observers. Sonia Gandhi on Monday asked both the observers Mallikarjun Kharge and Ajay Maken to submit a written report.

Kharge and Maken returned to Delhi on Monday and met Sonia Gandhi at 10 Janpath, the residence of the Congress president, after the legislature party meeting could not be held in Jaipur and MLAs supporting Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot took a virtually rebellious stand. Congress general secretary K.C. Venugopal was also present in the meeting. After the meeting with Sonia Gandhi that lasted for more than one and a half hours, Maken had said that the meeting of the legislature party in Jaipur on Sunday evening was called with the consent of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.