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| Congress Deciding Upon CMs | | | AGENCIES
JAIPUR, DEC 9: Jockeying for chief minister's post began today in the Congress party in Rajasthan where Ashok Gehlot appeared to be emerging as the front runner.
A day after the party inflicted a shock defeat on the BJP but fell short of the majority mark of 101, there were some voices of leaders evincing intrerest in getting the chief minister's post.
But Gehlot, a former chief minister, who won from Sadarpura seat, appeared poised and would not not make any comments about who the next chief minister would be.
"We have the support of all Independent MLAs as they know that the people have give a mandate against the BJP. And other parties like the BSP and CPI(M) are also ready to support us as they also want stability in the state," he told reporters.
In the 200-member Assembly, Congress got 96 seats, BJP 78, BSP 6, CPI(M) 3 and JD(U), SP and Lok Tantrik SP one each. Independents, including some Congress rebels, secured 14 seats.
PCC President, C P Joshi, who lost the election in Nathdwara by a single vote, appeared to have fired the first salvo in the chief ministerial race when he said it was not not necessary that the Congress should nominate only a winning candidate as the chief minister.
"When Ashok Gehlot was made the chief minister (last time) he was not not an MLA," he said referring to the situation in 1998 when Gehlot fought a bye election later and became an MLA.
"I have lost my poll battle but I have led the party to victory against the bad governance of BJP. As a captain I am happy," he said.
To a question as to who would become the chief minister, Joshi told reporters that in a democracy anyone could become the chief minister.
Jat leader, Col Sona Ram, who won the election from Bytoo in Barmer district, said there was a demand that someone from the Jat community should be made the chief minister.
Sis Ram Ola, a Union minister who belongs to the Jat community, is also said one of those in the race for the chief minister's post.
Joshi said the party high command would would depute observers to work out the formalities of the election of leader in the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) meeting. But a date has not not been fixed, he said.
The newly elected legislators would choose their leader and the observers would send their recommendation to the party high command and the Congress President Mrs Sonia Gandhi for nominating the name of Chief Minister, he told reporters.
Congress would form the new government after getting the support of Independents, he said, adding a number of Independents approached the party for open support. |
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