Jaipur: Factionalism within state Congress came to the fore Monday during a meeting to discuss strategy for the upcoming urban local body and panchayat elections, with several leaders publicly blaming party colleagues for their electoral defeats and accusing “Jaichands” (traitors) within the organisation of sabotaging Congress candidates.The meeting, held in the presence of AICC secretary Punam Paswan, witnessed sharp exchanges as Congress functionaries R R Tiwari and Archana Sharma aired grievances over alleged internal sabotage. Former minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, MLAs Amin Kagzi and Rafeek Khan and Jaipur City Congress president Sunil Sharma were also present on the dais.Former Hawa Mahal candidate Tiwari claimed he had lost the Assembly election not to BJP but because of “Congress’s own Jaichands”. He said he had initially been reluctant to contest but entered the fray on the instructions of the party high command. According to Tiwari, he lost by around 600 votes after some Congress functionaries allegedly arranged for nearly 600 voters to travel to Ajmer on the eve of polling in the name of a ziyarat at Ajmer Dargah.“Congress does not lose to RSS or BJP; Congress functionaries themselves make the party lose elections,” Tiwari said, alleging that internal sabotage had enabled the victory of a BJP candidate, Balmukundacharya.Tiwari also described former CM Ashok Gehlot as the “high command of Rajasthan Congress”, saying that while the party’s central leadership was in Delhi, Gehlot remained the supreme leader in the state because of his contribution and welfare initiatives, many of which, he claimed, had since been adopted by other states.Former Malviya Nagar candidate Archana Sharma echoed similar concerns, saying she had to fight Congress functionaries more than BJP during elections. Referring to her defeats, she alleged that party colleagues had worked against her in three Assembly elections, including the 2018 polls in which she lost narrowly.Her remarks triggered a heated exchange with Congress functionary Sangeeta Garg, who interrupted her speech and raised objections with city president Sunil Sharma. The argument escalated before other leaders intervened to defuse the situation.Addressing the gathering, Khachariyawas warned that Congress would deny tickets to leaders and workers who had rebelled or worked against official candidates in previous Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. He said only those who remained loyal to the party, participated in agitations and worked for the public would be considered for nominations, asserting that those who had “betrayed” the party should not be accommodated again despite any recommendations.
