Jaipur:
Former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje on Sunday started a two-day “yatra” of the state’s Bharatpur region, in a possible attempt to show her strength to the party leadership.
Addressing a gathering at Puchdi Ka Lota in Bharatpur ahead of her birthday on Monday, Raje said she is the daughter of a woman who had nationalism and the BJP in her blood and called upon her supporters to uproot the anti-development government of Ashok Gehlot in the state.
The two-day temple tour by Raje is being seen as an attempt by her to show her strength to the party leadership as she is upset over being sidelined, according to several party leaders.
Her temple tour has come at a time when state BJP president Satish Poonia is touring the Vagad region as part of his Halla Bol campaign against the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government in the state.
On Sunday, several former state ministers were present during the Raje’s yatra under which she will visit temples in the Krishna Circuit of Bharatpur and areas bordering Uttar Pradesh.
Referring to her mother Vijaya Raje Scindia who had been a Jana Sangha and BJP leader, Raje said, “Today, I would like to say that my mother had lit a lamp and nurtured a lotus. She never let the flame of the lamp dim and the lotus fade.”
“She had the BJP and nationalism in her blood. I am her daughter,” Raje said.
Raje said she has a deep connection with the religious circuit, so she decided to offer prayers at holy places in the region and celebrate her birthday.
Raje highlighted various developmental works done in the region by her government. She also asked the state government not to indulge in politics over the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project, a lifeline of 13 districts.
It is the duty of the state government to fulfil basic needs of people, she said.
Raje, however, allege that under the Congress government in the state, development activities in the entire state have stopped.
I have come to pray to Giriraj Maharaj to bless us and give strength so that we could uproot this anti-development Ashok Gehlot government, Raje said.
For the past a few days, Raje’s supporters have been busy arranging the high-profile event.
Several party leaders had urged Raje to be more proactive in the state politics, fearing a leadership change in the region, party leaders said.
At a recent meeting with the party’s central leadership, Raje is said to have raised her grievances. While the party wants her to play a more active role in national politics, the two-time chief minister is reluctant to leave Rajasthan.
A rift in the Rajasthan unit of the BJP had emerged after the party’s defeat in the 2018 Assembly elections.
BJP national president J P Nadda, who had visited Jaipur last week, had tried to bridge the gap between Raje and Poonia. But the two camps have instead upped the ante against each other, the party leaders said.
The central leadership is aware of all these developments, they said, adding that they have had made attempts to try and forge unity in the party and Raje has been included in a high-powered core committee for Rajasthan though she did not attend the first meeting of the group on January 24.
