In Rajasthan, why ‘Save Aravalli Hills’ stir marks new flashpoint, tests BJP, Cong

The trigger for the row is a new definition of the Aravalli Hills, proposed by a committee under the Union Environment Ministry and approved by the Supreme Court on November 20. It defines the Aravallis as any landform at an elevation of 100 metres or more above the local relief, including slopes and adjacent land.

Environmentalists fear the definition could pave the way for renewed mining activity in belts below 100 mts of the Aravallis, which make up 90% of the hill range, even though the Environment Ministry has said no new mining leases will be permitted until a detailed study is conducted, as mandated by the court.

The public concern is rooted in history: the Aravallis have long faced sustained pressure from legal and illegal mining, as well as construction and other development activities.

Politically, the issue presents an opportunity for the Opposition Congress, particularly in Rajasthan, which accounts for nearly two-thirds of the Aravalli range. The Congress’s central and state leaderships have seized on the matter, with senior leaders issuing statements and some hitting the streets. Yet, factionalism and the absence of a unified command raise questions about whether the party can fully capitalise on the moment.

As has been the case for long, ex-chief minister Ashok Gehlot moved swiftly, launching a “Save Aravalli” social media campaign on December 18, changing his profile picture and urging others to follow suit. He also released video statements countering Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, positioning himself at the forefront of the party’s push.

However, neither state Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra nor former deputy CM Sachin Pilot, the two tallest Congress leaders in Rajasthan after Gehlot, followed suit. Most senior leaders who have changed their profile pictures belong to the Gehlot camp, with the exception of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state Assembly, Tika Ram Jully, who has largely stayed outside factional alignments.

Though reminiscent of the BJP’s successful “Har Ghar Tiranga” and “#ModiKaParivar” initiatives, Gehlot’s move gained from being the first, yet, even by state standards, its traction is nowhere close to the BJP’s campaigns.

On the ground, Congress leaders like ex-minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas and Pushpendra Bhardwaj led an “Aravalli Bachao” march in Jaipur Sunday, drawing a few thousand supporters.

Dotasra and Jully were also engaged in MGNREGA rallies in Ajmer and Alwar Monday, before jointly addressing a press conference on the Aravalli issue in Jaipur a day later.

Sachin Pilot is set to join a march in Jaipur on December 26, organised by the NSUI and led by its state president Vinod Jakhar, a Pilot loyalist. The mobilisation is being seen as a show of strength by the Pilot camp, invoking earlier NSUI-led protests where Pilot played a central role. NSUI national president Varun Choudhary has announced a “5-7 day” cycle rally on the Aravalli issue from Rajasthan to Delhi on January 9.

The Indian Youth Congress has launched an online petition addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and LoP in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, garnering nearly 21,000 signatures by Tuesday evening. On Tuesday evening, it found belated support from party’s national handle on X. In Rajasthan, its state president and MLA Abhimanyu Poonia is a Pilot camp leader. Currently, he is busy with a campaign against drugs in Hanumangarh district, bordering Punjab, where he also led a campaign against the ethanol factory in district’s Tibbi last week, getting injured during the protests too.

Then, Nirmal Choudhary, a former Rajasthan University Students’ Union president, has announced a 1,000-km march from Mount Abu to “save Maa Aravalli.” Though seen as close to Pilot, Choudhary has also drawn support from the Gehlot camp’s Sanyam Lodha, whose constituency borders Mount Abu.

Beyond the Congress, parties such as the Bharat Adivasi Party (BAP) and the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) have also been planning their campaigns.

Common citizens have also hit the streets over the Aravalli row. From local politicians, school children and Karmi Sena in Udaipur, environmentalists and locals in Sirohi and Sikar, to ‘People for Aravallis’ of the civil society groups from Rajasthan and beyond – some of whom are wary of associating themselves with the Congress party – and a newly-formed Aravalli Bachao Sangharsh Samiti in Jhunjhunu and elsewhere, the state has been witnessing multiple protests on the issue.

The fragmented nature of these efforts, however, has meant there has been no single, large-scale rally comparable to the viral visuals circulating online.

Acknowledging this, Dotasra said there was “tremendous anger” across the state’s 19 districts touched by the Aravalli range. He announced that the Congress committees at all levels would begin awareness drives and campaigns, followed by a meeting of the state Congress Coordination Committee to chart out a unified campaign, calling the issue “a conspiracy to hand over the Aravallis to the mining mafia.”

For the BJP, the task is especially uphill as it has to navigate complicated optics. Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma also holds the Mines portfolio, while Bhupender Yadav and the state Forest and Environment Minister Sanjay Sharma both hail from Alwar, a district dominated by the Aravallis.

Hitting back at the Congress, CM Sharma said, “Merely changing one’s DP to ‘Save Aravalli’ isn’t enough. The Aravalli is completely safe. It is not just a mountain—it is our identity.” BJP leader Rajendra Rathore echoed this, arguing that the same 100-metre definition was adopted under the Gehlot government in 2003, accusing the Congress of politicising a judicial process.

Yet, public unease has forced the BJP to respond at multiple levels. As the Congress tries to consolidate the narrative and the BJP moves to contain the fallout, the Aravalli row is set to rage in the coming days.