Opinion: Ashok Gehlot's Injured Toe Achilles Heel For Assertive Kharge

The Mallikarjun Kharge-Rahul Gandhi duo has emerged as an assertive "High Command" in the Congress party. Rahul Gandhi calls the shots, Kharge effectively implements the decision. Written instructions are issued by general secretary KC Venugopal, a Rahul Gandhi confidante, citing Kharge's approval.

Amidst the uncertainty surrounding the next Opposition conclave after the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) coup in Maharashtra, Venugopal tweeted that the Bengaluru meet had been deferred by a few days, to July 17-18. This announcement was made overruling Janata Dal (United) spokesman KC Tyagi's announcement that the meeting, originally scheduled for July 13, was being put off to late August, after the Monsoon Session of parliament. Team Kharge team thus asserted its primacy as the host of the meeting.

The first act of Kharge's resurgence was the formation of the cabinet in Karnataka. The appointment of TS Singh Deo as Chhattisgarh's Deputy Chief Minister was the next decisive step. The focus is now on resolving the Rajasthan imbroglio - of finding a suitable slot for Sachin Pilot with the possible concurrence of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

A meeting was slotted for July 3 in Delhi to resolve the issue that has been hanging fire since Pilot's revolt in July 2020. The meeting had to be canceled as Ashok Gehlot was not in a position to travel after hurting his left toe; a few days ago, his big toe hit the leg of the Chief Minister's writing table while he was trying to get out of his chair. In a tweet, Gehlot said on the advice of doctors, he would be operating from home for a while.