Jaipur : Congress National General Secretary Sachin Pilot is busy these days campaigning for the assembly elections in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir. He is continuously holding meetings. Pilot had a special conversation with ‘Patrika’ amidst election rallies in Rewari and Mahendragarh of Haryana. During this, he said that in Rajasthan it is not known who is a minister in the government and who is not. The organization says something and the government refutes it. So many have become centers of power. Every day new news of tussle comes.
During this interview, he said that BJP ran a double engine government in Jammu and Kashmir through LG, but instead of counting its work in the elections, it relied on Pakistan. On the ruckus in Haryana over Congress MP Kumari Shailaja, Sachin Pilot said that factionalism is not an issue. The public wants to get rid of the ten years of misrule of BJP.
Question: How do you see the working of the BJP government in Rajasthan?
Answer: Work, what work! It is not known who is a minister in the government and who is not. The organization says something and the government denies it. So many power centers have been formed. Every day new news of tussle comes. The public is suffering because of this. Law and order has collapsed. I have seen for the first time that the public’s trust is lost so quickly. There is no such thing as a government in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. Whatever order is given from Delhi, it has to be followed. Delhi is running the governments through bureaucrats.
Question: By-elections are to be held on 7 assembly seats in Rajasthan, will this put the government to test for its performance?
Answer: Every election is a measure of the credibility of the government. This time wherever there will be by-elections, we will win. In ten months, people have become disappointed with the government.
Question: Now you are campaigning in Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir, what kind of atmosphere is there?
Answer: The BJP government has given the slogan of ‘One Nation One Election’. The situation is such that elections could not be held in Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra and Jharkhand. This issue has been raised only to divert attention. The campaigning is good in both the states and the BJP’s election campaign is not gaining momentum. In Kashmir, the BJP has fielded its candidates to split the votes of the All India Alliance.
Question: Congress is being accused of speaking like Pakistan regarding Article 370, how will the party defend itself?
Answer: BJP tries to bring Pakistan in every election. Whereas elections should be fought on the basis of manifesto and performance of the government. In Jammu and Kashmir, BJP took all the decisions by running a double engine government through LG without winning the elections. Elections are being held there after ten years due to the order of the Supreme Court. We are committed to giving full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. Despite the rule of the Central Government, incidents of terrorism have increased there and soldiers are getting martyred.
Question: Home Minister Amit Shah has promised to give two gas cylinders free of cost on Eid and Muharram. How do you view this?
Answer: When Congress talks about helping the poor, these people accuse them of distributing freebies and say anything to win the elections. Seeing their track record, people do not trust the words of Amit Shah or BJP leaders. People are very intelligent and worry about their future for five years. That is why they will make the Congress alliance win.
Question: There is talk of senior leader Kumari Shailja being angry in Haryana. How will you save the party from harm due to this?
Answer: Shailaja ji is our senior leader, BJP is playing political tricks with her. BJP should first take care of its own house. There is no issue of factionalism in Congress. Everyone distributed tickets together and now they are fighting elections together. The only goal of all the leadership of the state is to get rid of the people from 10 years of misrule.
