In Rajasthan, Congress leaders iron out differences over dinner

Though the BJP ridiculed the meet, Sachin Pilot said it was an internal affair of the Congress

Sachin Pilot

The “dinner diplomacy” of the Congress in Rajasthan has entered the second phase with Pradesh Congress president Sachin Pilot hosting a banquet for his party colleagues here on Tuesday evening. Almost all the senior party leaders attended the dinner in a show of unity.

Dinners at the residences of Congress leaders were initiated last month on the suggestion of AICC general secretary Gurudas Kamat in a bid to iron out differences among them.

Former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot hosted the first dinner at his official residence here on October 3.

Though it was supposed to be a fortnightly event, no formal announcement for the next dinner was made last month.

The event at Mr. Pilot’s residence was attended by all Congress leaders, except C.P. Joshi, Mohan Prakash and Jagannath Pahadia.

Even as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has ridiculed the new practice of Congress leaders meeting over dinner, Mr. Pilot told reporters that it was an “internal affair” of Congress with which the BJP had nothing to do.

The constant negative reactions of BJP leaders to the initiative taken by Congress were unwarranted, he said.

Leaders’ absence

Asked about the absence of certain party leaders, Mr. Pilot said though invitations were sent to everyone, each leader had his or her own responsibilities given by the party.

It was not necessary that all leaders should attend each and every meeting and event, he said.

Those who missed out on Mr. Pilot's dinner had informed him in advance. The leaders who participated included Mr. Kamat, Mr. Gehlot, Namo Narain Meena, Girija Vyas, B.D. Kalla, Chandrabhan and Rameshwar Dudi.

Mr. Pilot affirmed that such informal dinners provided an opportunity to the party leaders to interact with each other without the restrictions of protocol. “Such open discussions are helpful for both the leaders and the party set-up,” he said.

The interactions among Congress leaders are likely to help set an agenda for the 2018 Assembly elections and guide the party workers during the poll campaign.

The present strength of Congress members in the State Assembly is just 21.