Congress will win Rajasthan polls, BJP to lose in all 5 states: Gehlot

Jaipur: Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday said he was confident of a Congress win in Rajasthan assembly polls, and added that the BJP would not form the government in any of the five states where elections are being held.

Five state went to polls in November. While polling in Telangana will end Thursday evening, it was held earlier in the month in Mizoram, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Results of the elections will be declared on December 3.

"Congress government will be formed (in Rajasthan). In all five states, I feel that BJP is not going to form the government. Exit polls may say something, surveys might suggest something, but based on the feedback of people in the cities and villages, I feel that our government should come," Gehlot told reporters in New Delhi.

He said the Congress government in Rajasthan is the only government in the country, which has no anti-incumbency factor against it. “People are saying that the chief minister has not left any stone unturned in doing development works.” Gehlot slammed the “frightening language” used by BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, during the election campaign. “It was the language of vengeance and creating tension,” he said.

"No one liked the language they spoke. They were attacking me because they could not topple my government like they did in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh. They failed.

“They were hiding that pain inside. They deliberately planned in Delhi to not let Congress retain its government in Rajasthan. So, they were angry and spoke such a language," he said.

Replying to a question on a UP court issuing summons to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for “objectionable” remarks he made on Home Minister Amit Shah in 2018, Gehlot said, "The attack on Rahul Gandhi will cost them in 2024. The aura of Modi ji is not the same as it was earlier. People do not come to his public meetings like earlier. He is not able to understand it.”

He further said, "His (Rahul Gandhi) membership is not going to be affected. They keep hatching conspiracies. I cannot comment about it. These people are conspirators. They are destroying the country, killing democracy and the constitution." The chief minister added that the judiciary is working under pressure, and that the credibility of investigating agencies like ED, IT and CBI is being destroyed.

"I want investigating agencies to be here. They are important for economic offences. IT (Income Tax department) is important for increasing revenue. Instead of this, agencies have been diverted to be used against politicians. This is worrisome for the entire country," Gehlot said.

BJP's face and character has been exposed before the people who have gradually started to understand that there is difference between their words and actions, he said.

In a democracy, the fight should be on the basis of programmes, policies and principles but BJP leaders have started considering Congress as its enemy, Gehlot added.