Unfortunate to see Scindia leave Congress: Rajasthan Deputy CM Sachin Pilot

As senior politician Jyotiraditya Scindia gave a big jolt to Congress by ending its 18-year association with the party and joining BJP on Wednesday, Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot termed the development as unfortunate and said that he wished things were resolved 'collaboratively' withing the party.

"Unfortunate to see @JM_Scindia parting ways with @INCIndia. I wish things could have been resolved collaboratively within the party," Pilot tweeted.

The rebel Congress leader Scindia ended his association with the grand old party and was formally inducted into the saffron camp by BJP President JP Nadda at the party office in New Delhi.

Shortly after joining the party, Scindia lashed out at Congress, saying that there's 'widespread corruption' in the party. "I have worked for my state and my nation through Congress but the party is not same anymore, there is widespread corruption in the party, sand mafias and farmer distress," he said.

He also said that "There is a denial of reality in Congress, it has changed what the party used to be. I was hurt and distressed as I



was not able to serve the people in my previous organisation."

Notably, Scindia was on Wednesday named as one of the Rajya Sabha candidates for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Madhya Pradesh, moments after he joined BJP.

The BJP announced the names of its nine Rajya Sabha candidates, including former Congress leader Bhubaneswar Kalita from Assam, and allotted two seats to its allies, including Dalit leader and Union minister Ramdas Athawale from Maharashtra.

It was rumoured that Scindia was never going to be the first preference for the Congress in the elections to the Rajya Sabha seats. This, coupled with the fact that Congress central leadership chose veteran leader Kamal Nath over Scindia as Chief Minister of the state fueled rumours that there was a rift within Madhya Pradesh Congress. 

There were reports of alleged infighting and rumours that Scindia was feeling "ignored" within the grand old party.

Notably, 22 Congress MLAs who are considered close to Scindia also submitted their resignations to the Madhya Pradesh governor Lalji Tandon.