To keep a family happy, nation has paid price: Union Minister's swipe at Gandhis

New Delhi, July 22: Amid the unfolding political crisis in Congress-ruled Rajasthan, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat attacked the Gandhi family following the rebellion by Sachin Pilot and MLAs loyal to him.

"The whole country has paid the price for keeping a family happy," Union Minister and BJP MP from Jodhpur Gajendra Singh Shekhawat tweeted in hindi.

The Congress has alleged that the BJP leader's voice figure in them, a charge refuted by him.

The BJP has called these clips "manufactured" and demanded a CBI probe, questioning if the state police tapped phones of politicians in violation of rules.

The FIR registered by Rajasthan Police mentions details of alleged conversations of rebel Congress MLA Bhanwarlal Sharma with Gajendra Singh and a third man, named Sanjay Jain. The police have arrested Jain.

The Congress claims Gajendra Singh, the name mentioned in the FIR, is a reference to Union minister Shekhawat.

Rajasthan plunged into a political crisis after Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's deputy Sachin Pilot rebelled. The Congress later removed Pilot as the deputy chief minister and also as the party's state unit head.

The BJP has 76 MLAs in the 200-member Rajasthan assembly and to form government, the party will need the support of at least 25 more MLAs. But the BJP is looking at an additional 10 MLAs as a buffer.