Rajnath: Man of all seasons carries Vajpayee's legacy of 'Ajatshatru'

New Delhi: One of the top leaders of the BJP, Rajnath Singh is a man of all seasons who maintains cordial relations with leaders across the political spectrum and enjoys wide acceptability.

The Home Minister in the outgoing government, on whom Prime Minister Narendra Modi banked on heavily in the last five years whenever there was a crisis, be it farmers agitation, violence in Jammu and Kashmir or Jat quota stir, has been appointed Cabinet minister again.

Many see a reflection of Atal Bihari Vajpayee's mannerism in him and feel he has been carrying forward the party veteran's legacy as 'Ajatshatru, a man with no enemies.

His good rapport with opposition leaders like Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mamata Banerjee, Mulayam Singh Yadav, and Omar Abdullah had made him government's pointsman for any discussion with the opposition. Even during the bitter political campaign, 67-year-old Singh, who was contesting from Lucknow Lok Sabha seat, was never drawn into any ugly war of words with his opponents.

The image of the minister carrying on his shoulder the coffin of soldiers killed in February 14 Pulwama terror attack will remain etched in the minds of the people.

A former professor of physics, it was Singh, as BJP President in 2013, who was instrumental in declaring Narendra Modi as prime ministerial candidate, despite strong opposition from veterans like L K Advani. Singh was the third leader of the BJP, after Modi and BJP President Amit Shah, who had extensively campaigned for the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

He was the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh between 2000-2002, had also held the portfolios of Surface Transport and Agriculture in Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. A life-long RSS member, Singh occupied various positions in RSS, ABVP and Uttar Pradesh BJP before becoming the national President of the BJP twice -- 2005 to 2009 and 2013 to 2014.

Singh, who was elected to Lok Sabha from Lucknow for two consecutive terms in 2014 and 2019, was thrice elected to the Uttar Pradesh Assembly and twice to Rajya Sabha. He was elected to Lok Sabha for the first time in 2009 from Ghaziabad.

Singh was appointed district president of the Jana Sangh in 1975 at the age of 24 and was elected as MLA from Mirzapur in 1977.