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Congress sees a `weak' CM in Raje

Special Correspondent

Opposition party holds rally outside Assembly

JAIPUR: A Congress party rally held outside the Rajasthan Assembly on Thursday mounted a fresh offensive against the BJP-led Government in the State demanding resignation of Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. Speakers at the rally, who included Congress general secretaries Mukul Wasnik and Ashok Gehlot, PCC president B.D.Kalla and four party MPs, termed Ms.Raje a "weak Chief Minister" unable to control her Cabinet colleagues.

The party leaders, in a memorandum submitted to Rajasthan Governor Pratibha Patil, demanded dismissal of the Government. In their 24-point memorandum, the Congressmen said ever since the party had submitted its previous memorandum demanding dismissal of the Government things got only worse. The party targeted Ms. Raje for their attack, citing the criticism she had faced from her Cabinet colleagues over various decisions, including the recent foundation laying function of the Haj House in Sanganer near here. They called her an "insensitive and undemocratic person", almost a "despot" but at the same time a "weak Chief Minister" too. The concerted attack on Ms. Raje was seemingly timed when she was already under attack from her won party men and the Sangh Parivar.

"Her own Ministers have accused the Chief Minister of not taking the Cabinet into confidence on important policy decisions. If any Cabinet Minister does not have confidence in the Chief Minister he should have resigned or removed. If one of this does not happen, anyone with self-respect cannot continue as the Chief Minister," said Mr. Gehlot. He was referring to the spat between Ms. Raje and Education Minister Ghanshyam Tiwari, who raised the banner of revolt for the second time recently over the location of the Haj House. "For six hours the roads were blocked to the venue where the Chief Minister went to lay the foundation for the Haj House and there was large-scale violence. This is not a serious government," he noted.

"The Chief Minister has no control over her Ministers. Instead they are trying to control her. Ms. Raje is the weakest CM," Mr. Wasnik said. "This Government is deaf, dumb and blind. It is insensitive," he charged, adding that the attempts made by the BJP men to create a scene during the visit of Congress president Sonia Gandhi to Barmer in September were condemnable. Mr.Kalla said Ms.Raje was already on her way out.

"I came to know from reliable sources that the BJP high command has decided to change the Chief Minister." The MPs and leaders who addressed the gathering included Karan Singh Yadav, Prabha Thakur, Santosh Bagrodia, Sachin Pilot, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly, Ramnarain Choudhary, former Chief Minister Jagannath Pahadia, former Deputy Chief Ministers, Kamla and Banwarilal Bairwa.

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