Sachin Pilot’s Rajasthan sacking could hasten Congress party’s slide into oblivion

Sachin Pilot was the deputy chief minister of India’s biggest state before his shock sacking this week for refusing to toe the party line

Analysts say the 42-year-old’s fate provides yet more evidence of a diminished Congress riven by infighting after last year’s electoral defeat

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Sachin Pilot, former deputy chief minister of Rajasthan (centre), pictured at an event in March. Photo: Facebook

Published: 8:19pm, 17 Jul 2020Updated: 10:56pm, 18 Jul 2020

The shock sacking of the second most senior government official in India’s northwestern state of Rajasthan has caused political turmoil as the country crossed a grim milestone of 1 million coronavirus cases on Friday and authorities suggested people should learn to “live with the virus”.

It was the refusal of Sachin Pilot, deputy chief minister of the country’s largest state by land area, to toe the party line that reportedly led to his dismissal – all the more surprising because he had been seen as a rising star within the opposition Congress party.

The 42-year-old studied at the University of Pennsylvania’s prestigious Wharton School in the US and was touted by some as a pivotal next generation leader for Congress, which has struggled in recent years to generate the kind of support at the polls enjoyed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP.

His fortunes have been wavering, however, amid the political infighting that eventually led to his sacking and since last year’s electoral drubbing for Congress at the national polls.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party, pictured in November. Photo: Reuters

Rumours have swirled that Pilot is now planning to cross over to the BJP – a charge he has denied, but which would not be without precedent. A wave of defections in recent months has seen a number of former Congress faithful switch sides – the most prominent among them being Jyotiraditya Scindia, whose desertion of the party in March led to the collapse of the Congress-led administration in Madhya Pradesh.