I resigned because of confusion in Congress over Rajasthan CM : Ajay Maken

On the Gujarat polls, he said Arvind Kejriwal is repeating the promises in Gujarat, which he made in Delhi. Alleging corruption in power, health and education sectors by the Kejriwal government, he said AAP’s model is Bijli, Berozgar and Brashtachar.

Sohil Sehran

November 24, 2022 / 03:42 PM IST

Ajay Maken

Senior Congress leader and All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Ajay Maken on November 22, said he resigned as in-charge of Rajasthan because of the confusion over the chief minister in the state.

In a conversation with Moneycontrol, Maken said, “On September 29, KC Venugopal had said Sonia Gandhi will make a decision on Rajasthan’s chief minister within two days. It’s been close to two months, no decision has been communicated.”

Maken said a greater responsibility was on him as general secretary and in charge of the state. “At the end, I will be held accountable by the party and leaders in the state,” he said.

It’s the confusion at various levels, because of which the party loses polls, added Maken.

His resignation comes in the backdrop of events in late September when Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot refused to leave his post to contest the party’s presidential election. Over 90 MLAs had refused to attend a meeting where Sachin Pilot’s name was supposed to be decided as Ashok Gehlot’s replacement.

The padyatra is certainly making an impact on the ground. People in lakhs have come out and supported Rahul Gandhi. The purpose of this march is to highlight the issues concerning everyone, such as unemployment, price rise, economy, and social issues. People are meeting him, discussing issues, and this shows the real outcome of the yatra, said Maken.

Asked whether he will be joining the yatra in Rajasthan after it completes the Madhya Pradesh leg, Maken said, “It will be decided later. There are observers, who are taking care of all the affairs. Presently, I am concentrating on civic body polls in Delhi.”

Civic body polls in Delhi

Congress has already intensified its campaign in the national capital. Public awareness is being raised on issues, such as corruption in the power, health, and education sectors.

“The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) with its fake promises has taken the vote share of Congress. Our traditional voters (have been) influenced by fake promises. We are telling them about the massive corruption in Kejriwal’s electricity model,” said Maken.

He alleged that ever since AAP came to power in Delhi, 37 percent of industries totaling 2,638 units have shut down, causing unemployment to 1.38 lakh workers.

Asked whether the central leadership will devote time to Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) polls, he said, “These elections are fought on local issues. Even in previous elections, we didn’t invite the central leadership for campaigning. BJP is doing it because they are aware of their poor record. Our local leaders will continue their fight against BJP’s rule in the MCD.”

Gujarat polls

The senior Congress leader is planning to visit the state as well for campaigning in the coming days, where polling is scheduled for December 1 and 5. He said that Congress will also distribute booklets highlighting the rampant corruption in Delhi’s power sector.

“Arvind Kejriwal is making the same promises in Gujarat, that he made in Delhi. We will focus on highlighting his failure in Delhi so that they don’t waste their votes for him. AAP’s model is Bijli, Berozgar and Brashtachar,” added Maken.

Rahul Gandhi missing from campaigning

Rahul Gandhi is taking out the yatra for a purpose. There will always be elections in one or the other state. If he focuses on the campaigning, the yatra will get affected, said Maken.