Jaipur: The ongoing verbal clash between Rajasthan Chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and his predecessor Ashok Gehlot continued for a fourth day Friday, with Gehlot saying Sharma’s remarks had hurt his own standing and urging him to apologise to the people of the state.“Bhajan Lal ji has got an opportunity in life. He should respect democracy and behave appropriately with the opposition. The way he has behaved is not in his own interest. I believe he has damaged himself,” Gehlot told reporters at the airport before leaving for Delhi.Gehlot further asked Sharma to gauge public opinion regarding the impact of his comments, saying, “You can ask people across Rajasthan what impact your comments have had. Find that out, make corrections and apologise. You don’t have to apologise to me; apologise to the public.”Gehlot questioned Sharma’s repeated references to his brief stint in a fertiliser business decades ago, arguing the CM could not have personal knowledge of it. “He (Sharma) doesn’t even seem to know what he is saying. It appears someone has written it out for him and he is simply repeating it,” Gehlot said.He also claimed that the language used by Sharma had drawn disapproval even within BJP and RSS. According to Gehlot, people associated with the two organisations who “viewed politics beyond party lines” felt Sharma’s comments in Jodhpur were inappropriate.The dispute began on Nov 3 when Sharma, speaking at BJP’s ‘Loktantra Bachao–Arajakta Hatao’ rally in Jodhpur, accused Gehlot of exploiting farmers through a fertiliser and seed business before entering politics, alleging overcharging and sale of fake seeds and fertilisers.Gehlot responded the same evening, asking Sharma to back the claims with documentary evidence or apologise within 24 hours, calling the allegations “baseless.”On Friday, Gehlot said he had opened the shop nearly 56 years ago and closed it within six months to contest student union elections at Jodhpur University. “How did you come to know what I did there? You have made allegations about fake seeds and fake fertilisers. Did you have some dream about it?” he said.Referring to the controversy involving IAS officer Shikhar Agrawal, Gehlot said, “We raised the issue of Agrawal’s villa purchase and shared other feedback we received with the public and the media. But look at the way you have responded by levelling personal attacks on me.”The latest exchange comes a day after Sharma, addressing a BJP rally in Jaipur Thursday, reiterated his allegations against Gehlot and challenged the latter to prove even one of the things he had raised against him wrong.
