The Rajasthan polls are scheduled to be held on or before December 2023 to elect representatives 200 seats of the state’s Legislative assembly. 

What started with an invitation to speak, and the fact that the Rajasthan CM would not be ‘able to welcome PM Modi’ to the state, elevated to red tomato and red diary barbs on both end. 

For context, red tomatoes have been selling at sky high prices all across the country causing many to give up on the botanical fruit, including burger chains like McDonalds. At certain cities in India the cost of tomatoes were higher than even fuel prices. 

The ‘red dairy’ for the Rajasthan cabinet is the one waved by sacked Rajasthan Congress MLA Rajendra Gudha claiming it contained details of irregular financial transactions. MLA Gudha claimed that the ‘red’ dairy contained the details of alleged irregular financial transactions of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Notably, Gudha was sacked by CM Gehlot hours after he flagged women’s safety issue in the Rajasthan cabinet. 

Barbs flew between Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. PM Modi is in Rajasthan as part of the BJP’s election campaigning ahead of the Rajasthan Assembly Polls. 

On Thursday, PM Modi took a dig at CM Gehlot and claimed that the secrets in the diary will ruin the ruling Congress in the upcoming Assembly polls.

As was customary, CM Gehlot had a sharp retort, where he said PM Modi could see an ‘imaginary red diary’ but not ‘ red tomatoes, red cylinders’, whose soaring prices have hit kitchen budgets for lakhs of Indians. 

Prime Minister Modi is in Sikar, Rajasthan, where at the election campaign rally, PM Modi mocked Rahul Gandhi’s Mohabbat ki Dukaan‘ and said, “The red diary” is a fresh product of the Congress’ “loot ki dukan“. It is said that the “dark deeds” of the Congress are recorded in the diary, which will defeat the party in elections in the state”. 

In reply, Gehlot said at a state government event, “The red diary is an imagination. There is no red diary. He can see the red diary, but not red cylinders and red tomatoes. He can’t see the faces of people that have turned red due to price rise. People will show him the red flag in the elections.”

Meanwhile, Congress leader and former deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot on Thursday said, “BJP has no issue left. They failed at the centre level as well as in the state. They are in opposition here but they failed here too…Congress will form government in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Madhya Pradesh.”

He was replying to queries about the alleged ‘red diary’. 

Earlier in the day, Gehlot alleged that the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) had cancelled his speech at the Sikar event. The Prime Minister‘s Office (PMO), however, said it was informed by Gehlot’s office that he will not be able to attend the programme. 

It also said he was “most welcome” to join the programme.

Updated: 27 Jul 2023, 02:58 PM IST