Rajasthan: Rebel Congress MLA resigns due to 'anguish'; Sachin Pilot 'concerned'

Congress MLA Hemaram Choudhary on Saturday said he was “anguished” over some issues and that was why he decided to resign from the Rajasthan assembly.

The Gudhamalani MLA who was among 19 legislators to rebel against Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot last year under former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot’s leadership, was also dissatisfied over the alleged halting of the development work in his constituency. He, however, did not elaborate whether the party leadership caused him anguish.

Hemaram Choudhary said that Congress state unit president Govind Singh Dotasra had spoken to him and it is now up to him how he sorts out the issue.

“I have sent my resignation and now the speaker has to look into it. Party's state president talked to me and said (my resignation) is the party’s family matter. He is head of the party in the state and it is for him to sort out the issue,” Hemaram Choudhary told reporters in Barmer.

The legislator said he has resigned, but talking about it is not his top priority. “The COVID-19 pandemic is there and people are dying. I visited anti-COVID centres in my constituency and took stock of the situation and arrangements there. This is the top priority for me at present,” he said.

Senior Congress leader and former deputy CM Sachin Pilot on Friday said Hemaram Chaudhary’s resignation is a matter of concern.

"Chaudhary is the senior-most MLA of the House. He has been a major contributor to Rajasthan and Congress politics. There is hardly any other example matching his simplicity, honesty and humility in the party. His resignation is a matter of great concern," Pilot told reporters.

Chaudhary was the leader of opposition in the Rajasthan assembly and also a former revenue minister. He had supported Pilot camp with other legislators who rebelled against the Ashok Gehlot leadership last year. 

Another Congress MLA threatens to resign

Following his resignation, another MLA from the Sachin Pilot camp expressed dissatisfaction from the party, threatening to quit if ‘things don’t change.’ Expressing dissent over the delay in the expansion of the cabinet and the formation of committees, Ved Prakash Solanki said he will be forced to resign if things continue like this. The 60-year-old MLA from Chaksu constituency is considered one of the close aides of former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot. According to Solanki, many MLAs are unhappy with the government as they and cannot bear the "pressure” of the Congress leadership.