Vasundhara Raje's Criticism of Govt Officials Gives Congress Gunpowder to Attack the BJP in Rajasthan

Jaipur: Senior BJP leader and former Chief Minister of Rajasthan Vasundhara Raje’s scathing criticism of officials of the local administration in her home district of Jhalawar has given the opposition Congress an opportunity to attack the Bhajan Lal Sharma-led BJP government in Rajasthan.

On April 8, Raje took to social media platform X and slammed officials of the local administration in Jhalawar district, demanding to know what they have done with the funds released under the Jal Jeevan Mission for Jhalawar.

‘I will not let this happen’: Raje’s scathing criticism of government officials

“The Prime Minister has given Rs. 42 thousand crore under the Jal Jeevan Mission. Provide the accounting of every penny that what did you do with Jhalawar's share of the amount? Our government is giving money to solve the drinking water crisis, but the officers are not implementing the schemes properly. That is why the people of Rajasthan are thirsty. This is the situation in April. What will happen in June-July?” said Raje in the post.

प्रधानमंत्री जी ने 42 हज़ार करोड़ जल जीवन मिशन में दियें हैं। पाई-पाई का हिसाब दो कि झालावाड़ के हिस्से की राशि का आपने क्या किया? पेयजल संकट निवारण के लिए हमारी सरकार तो पैसा दे रही है, लेकिन अफसर योजनाओं की सही क्रियान्विति नहीं कर रहे। इसलिए राजस्थान के लोग प्यास से व्याकुल… pic.twitter.com/Ou1kHzEG4P

— Vasundhara Raje (@VasundharaBJP) April 8, 2025

The two-time former Chief Minister added that the officers present, including the superintendent engineer, could not give her any satisfactory answer during her visit to Jhalawar's Raipur. She also urged the officials to not test the patience of the people as this attitude will never work in Jhalawar.

“Does the public not feel thirsty? Only you officers feel thirsty. The public is troubled due to the drinking water crisis in summer. The officers are satisfied. Water should reach the lips of the people and not just on paper. The officers are sleeping, the people are crying,” said Raje in another post.

Raje added that on the complaint of the villagers of Raipur town regarding the drinking water crisis, strict instructions were given to the officers of Jal Jeevan Mission.

“I will not let this happen,” said Raje, who is currently a national vice president of the BJP and also an MLA from the Jhalrapatan constituency in Jhalawar. Her son Dushyant Singh is the incumbent MP in Jhalawar. Singh has consecutively won the parliamentary constituency five-times since 2004.

Soon after Raje’s admonishment for the local officials, the senior BJP leader’s statements found support from unlikely quarters – the opposition Congress.

Congress ‘thanks’ Raje, slams BJP government in state

Rajasthan Congress President Govind Singh Dotasra “thanked” Raje for raising the issue and said that she has told the people of Rajasthan “the truth about the inactive BJP government.”

“This lecture on the failures of the Bhajanlal government is not being given by any opposition leader, but by BJP's National Vice President and former Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje ji. Due to the mismanagement of the BJP government, the problem of electricity and water is worsening in the state, the government has not made any arrangements in one and a half years,” Dotasra said in a post on X.

Dotasra alleged that due to a dominant bureaucracy, the government's preparations and policies are limited to only on paper.

“It is unfortunate for the people of Rajasthan, who instead of choosing the people's government, got deceived by the corrupt and opportunists and handed over the power to them. Will this challenge of Vasundhara Raje ji to the Parchi Sarkar do good to the people or will it change the Parchi?” added Dotasra.

Ever since the BJP came to power in December 2023 and the party’s central leadership chose first-time MLA Bhajan Lal Sharma as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, the Congress has been consistently terming his government as “Parchi sarkar (government run by slips)” and accusing the BJP central leadership of running the Rajasthan government through remote control.

The reference to a Parchi (slip) is rooted in the fact that at the time of the announcement of the Chief Minister, Sharma’s name was written on a slip sent by the central leadership, which was opened by Raje before she announced his name as the Chief Minister.

Other Congress leaders such as Rajasthan Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully too attacked the BJP government in the state citing Raje’s post.

“How unfortunate it would be that the former Chief Minister, despite her party being in power, has to express her views through the media and social media regarding the fulfillment of a basic need such as water,” said Jully in a post on X.

पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री श्रीमती वसुंधरा राजे सिंधिया जी का यह ट्वीट भाजपा सरकार की सच्चाई उजागर करने के लिए काफी है। कितनी दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण स्थिति होगी कि पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री को अपनी पार्टी की सरकार के बावजूद पानी जैसी मूलभूत आवश्यकता की पूर्ति के लिए अपनी बात मीडिया एवं सोशल मीडिया के… https://t.co/I4FpUhFXzL

— Tika Ram Jully (@TikaRamJullyINC) April 8, 2025

On Friday (April 11) former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot told reporters that if Raje has political honesty, she should speak not only about Jhalawar but entire Rajasthan.

Why Raje’s word still matters in Rajasthan

While Raje was overlooked for the post of Chief Minister by the BJP central leadership, the clout that the 72-year-old leader still holds in the state was demonstrated by the fact that just a day after her statement, Union Minister of Jal Shakti C.R. Paatil said that his department has sought an immediate factual report from the Rajasthan government on the issue.

“The concern raised by @VasundharaBJP regarding the water crisis in Jhalawar has been taken seriously by the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Government of India. An immediate factual report has been sought from the Rajasthan government in this regard,” said Union Minister Paatil in a post on X on April 9.

Also Read: Phone Tapping Allegations by BJP's Own Minister Turns the Heat On Rajasthan Govt

Raje continues to remain one of the most powerful leaders of the BJP in Rajasthan, with a large number of loyalists among the 119 MLAs of the BJP in the Rajasthan assembly. She also enjoys massive popularity among the state’s public and routinely visits different areas of the state, drawing large crowds.

While her supporters were not included in the council of ministers in the present BJP government, Raje’s words still carry immense weight in the political milieu of the state.

In January this year, Chief Minister Sharma met Raje at the latter’s residence in Jaipur, reflecting her continuing relevance in the state's politics.

Responding to the Congress’s accusations over Raje’s statement, the BJP said that the grand old party should look into the fissures within their own ranks.

“Vasundhara ji has remained the Chief Minister of Rajasthan for 10 years and is a public leader. If she felt that there was carelessness on part of some official in her constituency, she highlighted. There is no infighting in this. The Congress leaders making such statements should remember their own time when their deputy chief minister and state president had to be removed along with sitting ministers. They should remember the kind of words used by Ashok Gehlot against Sachin Pilot,” Rajasthan BJP spokesperson Laxmikant Bhardwaj told The Wire.

Bhardwaj said that criticising any official doesn’t amount to criticising the government and the Congress need not speak on the matters of the BJP, as the party is capable of dealing with them.

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