NEW DELHI: The BJP is keeping a close tab on the Congress infighting in poll-bound Rajasthan, where it is also banking on BJP chief Amit Shah’s announcement that Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje wouldn’t be calling the shots in ticket distribution. A section of BJP leaders is optimistic that all is not lost in Rajasthan, which is of late sticking to the pattern of voting out the incumbent government. “We are picking strong signals that the internal fighting in the Congress is beginning to show impact in the elections. There are reports that the Congress camps led by C P Joshi, Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot are working at cross-purposes... This should be a positive factor for the BJP, which is facing strong anti-incumbency,” said a senior BJP functionary.
Besides, BJP leaders claimed Shah’s campaign have sent out the message among the party cadre that grass root workers would be given opportunities to contest the election as the party is not willing to re-nominate almost half of its sitting MLAs. “The BJP is hopeful that anti-incumbency factor could get neutralised to some extent once half of the sitting legislators against whom the Central party has received adverse reports, are dropped,” said a senior BJP functionary.
While Pilot is building a campaign against the Vasundhara Raje government, BJP leaders claimed that Gehlot continues to call shots in the party affairs in Rajasthan. “We are expecting a number of formidable Congress leaders to cross the fence due to infighting once the polling dates approach. The BJP may accommodate a good number of them in the list of poll candidates,” added the BJP functionary.
Shah had apparently used to the ploy of growing anti-incumbency against the Rajasthan government to deny CM Vasundhara Raje a choice in picking the state unit party chief, and to field a battery of Central leaders hailing from the state to spearhead the election campaign.