As a meeting of the Legislative party of the Congress left the decision to elect the Chief Minister to party President Rahul Gandhi, indications are strong that the mantle will be given for the third time to veteran leader Ashok Gehlot.

The State witnessed street fights between the supporters of PCC President Sachin Pilot and Gehlot on the matter.

CLP meet

The sources indicate that a compromise formula is being worked out to make Pilot and senior leader CP Joshi as Deputy Chief Ministers in the government. Rahul Gandhi has summoned Pilot and Gehlot to Delhi for a meeting on Thursday.

After intense discussions in the CLP meeting, a party delegation met Governor Kalyan Singh and staked claim to form the government.

Party MLA Parsadi Lal Meena said Rahul Gandhi will decide the Chief Minister’s name on Thursday. There are reports that most of the MLAs favoured Pilot in the meeting.

But to get the majority in the Assembly, Congress needs more numbers and the party is depending on a seasoned politician like Gehlot to make the numbers.

Party insiders believe that whatever Rahul Gandhi decides, the internal matters are bound to get dirty in the coming days. As the party did not get a simple majority in the polls, Pilot may not get the support he enjoyed so far from the high command.

A senior leader in the party blamed organisational problems for the defeat and said Pilot is responsible for the party apparatus as he got five years without a break at the helm.

Gehlot’s contribution

Gehlot has been helping Rahul Gandhi in taking crucial decisions at the AICC. Gehlot’s involvement helped the party to win in Punjab and Karnataka.

In Gujarat, Gehlot played a crucial role in improving the Congress’ tally in the Assembly. There are also rumours that Rahul Gandhi may bring Pilot back to the AICC headquarters as Lok Sabha polls are not very far.

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