Ashok Gehlot Loyalists Meet Amid Who-Is-Next-Chief-Minister Suspense

Nine Rajasthan Congress MLAs, including four ministers, are having a meeting at the home of Shanti Dhariwal – an Ashok Gehlot loyalist – ahead of the crucial party meet where the next Chief Minister will be named.

The agenda of this meet is not known and there is speculation that it might be a strategy session of sorts by Team Gehlot to keep a loyalist in the top post. There is speculation that the Chief Minister’s arch-rival Sachin Plot may finally succeed him.

The crucial Congress meet will be held later in the evening, under the eyes of central leader KC Venugopal and state in-charge Ajay Maken. But the party’s interim chief, Sonia Gandhi, will name the next Chief Minister, sources have said.

Mr Gehlot, the frontrunner for the post of the party president, had been extremely reluctant to leave the top job in Rajasthan to keep Mr Pilot away. But after Rahul Gandhi’s vocal support of the recent “one man one post” resolution, his hands have been tied.

Sources, however, indicated earlier that if not him, Mr Gehlot would prefer a loyalist to head the government.

The meet at Mr Dhariwal’s house is being attended by ministers BD Kalla, Mahesh Joshi, Mahendrajit Malviya and Arjun Bamaniya.