Interview | Sachin Pilot on Paper Leaks, Rahul Gandhi, Adani, and the Importance of Forgetting

With the Rajasthan elections mere days away, former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot has been actively campaigning for the Congress party not just in Rajasthan but also in Madhya Pradesh. At Tonk, The Wire caught up with him.

Over the years, we have been seeing that the Congress party comes to power every 10 years, but its vote share keeps decreasing. In 2018, the party won with a small margin of 0.5%. Do you think the party will even win this election?

See, every election is different. Last time, we fought the elections with just 21 MLAs – we went from 21 to 100, and this time we are in power and have a report card to show the public what we have done.

Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty

You will find an environment in favour of the Congress in Rajasthan, which is also present in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana. The BJP hasn’t done any work as an opposition party in the state – I believe people have seen their ten years of work in the country also, and shortcomings in it have also become apparent.

The public has to find a better option, and that is the Congress.

The youth like you very much but have been angry over paper leaks in the last five years. If we calculate the average, three papers have been leaked every year since 2019.

Yes, I agree, paper leaks are a big issue here in Rajasthan; we can’t compromise with this issue.

No one has the right to play with the future of our youth. We can’t compromise on this issue. Paper leaks are a problem in other states too. I’m happy that my party has listened to my concern, and the punishment for paper leaks in our state is life imprisonment.

Our government cares for the students: that’s why it is the first government in the state who has made a law on paper leaks, and hence the harshest punishment has been provided for.

Also Read: At Tijara, Rajasthan's ‘Yogi’ Talks of Rising Above Caste

We spoke about the youth – there is one more issue that we have been seeing in Rajasthan. In Kota, we see thousands of students coming every year to prepare for [the JEE and NEET]. This year, we have seen over 25 suicides. What is the solution? Because students from the entire country come to Kota.

It is very unfortunate that suicide incidents are increasing in Kota. This is also a social problem. Lakhs of children come to study; we are also providing counselling to them.

But what is the solution?

We need to think about it; failure can’t be looked down upon. These are societal issues, young people committing suicide – it's the worst thing for any country or any society. I am very sad about these things coming out.

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati said her party will be contesting all 200 seats in Rajasthan. The BSP has influence over Scheduled Caste (SC) votes. Do you think it can affect the Congress? As we have seen in the 2018 election, the Congress [which went on to form the government] won more SC seats than the BJP.

Many parties contest elections, but in Rajasthan, elections are held mainly between only two parties, the Congress and the BJP. These parties have been contesting before also; parties apart from the Congress and the BJP might get one or two seats, but the main contest will always be between the Congress and the BJP.

Look at these regional parties, what is their situation in their own state? So I believe that people from all sections of society stand with the Congress today.

Also Read: As Congress and BJP Battle for Rajasthan, Can BSP Influence Electoral Outcome?

How about Hanuman Beniwal’s Rashtriya Loktantrik Party, which is also contesting this vidhan sabha election?

See, I told you – many parties contest elections here, but the competition is between the Congress and the BJP only. It’s the same for Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh also. These parties may get a small amount of the vote share, but I am telling you, for every society, whether urban or rural, the Congress party is a better place for everyone.

In 2013, the Congress experienced its worst defeat – the party had only 21 MLAs left – after which the elections of 2018 were imposed under your leadership. But why did the party still not make you the chief minister?

Ji, this is right; we were 21 only, and we struggled a lot to make it 100 in Rajasthan. We struggled for five years, on the street – we faced lathi charges, we went to jail, we staged protests, yatras and gheraos – and it is after this that the people blessed us and put us in power.

I always say that governments are made by parties, but the reverse isn’t true. Our first priority is that the party organisation should remain strong. Then, after the elections and after the opinion of the MLAs, it will be decided who should be given what responsibility.

Now, we all have the same objective: seeing how we can form a strong Congress government here. There is a need for a stronger Congress when we form governments in different states of the country; hence the Rajasthan election is important for us.

People are going to vote in Rajasthan in 10 days [from the date of the interview]; why is Rahul Gandhi not campaigning?

Rahul Gandhi is here only, and he will be here till November 23; Priyanka Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge all have programmes here. Today, i.e., on the evening of November 15, the election campaign of Madhya Pradesh has ended. You will meet everyone here till November 23.

Also Read: Madhya Pradesh's Emergence as Another Hindutva Laboratory Keeps BJP Afloat

What is your opinion on the issue of women's safety, which the BJP is continuously raising in Rajasthan?

See, women's safety should be a top priority and should not be politicised. It is mandatory to register an FIR for any incident that happens in Rajasthan.

We do not try to suppress the incidents. What is happening in UP or Madhya Pradesh … everyone knows that there are things happening in Madhya Pradesh which are exposed later. Here, we do not try to suppress the facts around crime.

Our priority here is that … whatever incident happens, how quickly we take action on it and how quickly we get the culprit punished is our priority. We have done strong work in that direction – there is always room for improvement, and we will do that.

Talking about the BJP, they don’t have issues to raise, do they? Cylinder prices are at an all-time high and so are those of petrol and diesel. How high is unemployment? Can anyone imagine by how much the gap between the rich and the poor has increased?

This government has sold the country's airports, railways, ports, power plants and mines at throwaway prices. The incomes of farmers have not even doubled; the BJP does not even have its report card to show, so they are pointing fingers at others. People will reply to them.

The Congress party is giving seven guarantees in Rajasthan:

(1) an annual honorarium of Rs 10,000 to women heads of family, (2) cooking gas cylinders at Rs 500 to 1.05 crore families, (3) the purchase of dung from cattle rearers at Rs 2 per kg, (4) a law for the old pension scheme for government employees, (5) a laptop or tablet to students taking admission in government colleges, (6) insurance cover up to Rs 15 lakh per family to compensate for losses due to natural calamities and (7) school education in the English medium.

From where will the party bring the funds?

Our fiscal management is much better than in other states. We launch our schemes with great responsibility. Mainly, the tax-paying public's money should go into the hands of the people in the form of a pension; children should get food in school; there should be social welfare programs and they should get scholarships.

Is this better, or is it better to forgive industrialists’ debts worth crores of rupees? It’s about priorities.

Rahul Gandhi has been continuously attacking Adani, but on the other hand, Ashok Gehlot is seen on the same stage with Adani. How do you see these two sides?

See, only Mr Gehlot give the answer to this question, but overall, we want to end capitalism in the country and we don't want the entire economy to be run by a few people. Rahul ji has said that the poor should have the first right over state assets.

(Later, on Adani, Pilot added, “I don't want to say much about the person you are talking about.”)

If the Congress comes to power, will we see Sachin Pilot as our next chief minister?

First, let us win the elections, and then we will take this decision. We will seek advice from legislators and the party's top leadership.

It has been our old tradition for decades that we first form the government and then decide who will become the chief minister after considering the views of our Vidhan Sabha members and our party’s senior members.

You are talking about the decision of the MLAs or even the decision of senior leaders. We have seen in September 2022 how MLAs have different opinions from the party’s senior leaders about the post of chief minister.

Party president Mr Kharge told me to forgive, forget and move forward, and asked what is the point of repeating what has happened in the past.

We have to look ahead, and the tradition of the party is to first win the election and then make the decision about who will get what. Chief minister Ashok Gehlot has also apologised for the incident you are talking about.

The text of this interview was lightly edited for style and clarity.

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