Jaipur royal says no rivalry with Vasundhara

BJP’s Vidyadhar Nagar seat candidate and Rajsamand MP, Diya Kumari, has told News18 that she respects Vasundhara Raje “greatly”, and it was she who brought her into the party, accusing the opposition of creating rumours of her alleged rivalry with the former BJP chief minister.

News18 on Saturday caught up with Diya Kumari, who belongs to the Jaipur royal family, in the midst of her hectic campaign in her constituency in Jaipur. “I have no rivalry with Vasundhara Raje. This talk is all created by the opposition. I respect her greatly, she brought me into the party. She is my mentor in politics. Even before I came into politics, we have known her family,” Diya Kumari told News18 in an interview. When asked about claims that she is seen as Raje’s successor in the CM chair, Kumari said: “Please tell Congress to mind their own business and to look after their own party. Our parliamentary board will decide. We go by that.”

Priyanka Gandhi on Friday in Dausa asked who the BJP’s CM face in Rajasthan was, amidst the party not projecting anyone. “The entire fight in their party (Congress) is about who is the CM. One is the CM (Ashok Gehlot), and the other (Sachin Pilot) wants to be the CM. Tell them (Congress) to sort out their fight and mess first, and not bother about us,” Kumari told News18.

Kumari asked why Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi had not visited any of the crime spots in Rajasthan or met woman victims of the “pathetic” law and order situation in the state. “She did not come even once. Is it not her responsibility? Isn’t this her government? When she can go to UP, why not Rajasthan? Is the woman here not a human?” Kumari asked Priyanka Gandhi. She said it was “because of the Congress there is no law and order in Rajasthan”.

“Women are not safe either in urban or rural areas, they can’t get out in the day, forget the night. This is a pathetic situation and an issue of shame,” Kumari said. She said crime against women had become so rampant that at least 20 such incidents are reported daily. “I went to Karauli, Bhilwara and many other places where such indents happened — our teams also reach or they would not have got justice because the local congress MLA and administration are involved,” Diya Kumari said.