Four days ago Rawat said : his last wish is to see Rahul Gandhi as PM and then will quit politics ! Today, he’s nominated as general secy of AICC n Member, CWC

Four days ago Rawat said : his last wish is to see Rahul Gandhi as PM and then will quit politics ! Today, he’s nominated as general secy of AICC n Member, CWC

Just two days ago while interacting with the senior journalists at Talk on Table programme of the SUNDAY POST at its Noida office, the former Uttarakhand chief minister made a very significant announcement that his dire wish is see the Nehru Gandhi scion and the AICC chief Rahul Gandhi whom he termed as the most ablest and pro people leader of the country, become the prime minister of the country. He also said that thereafter he will quit politics but till then whatever may be the consequences, he will continue to serve the party and leadership with full vigour and vitality.

His statement then gave the full impression of his psychophant behaviour but just three days after this statement of his, the former Uttarakhand chief minister and two time union state minister despite losing from two assembly constituencies in Uttarakhand in the preceding state elections, has been promoted elegantly by Rahul Gandhi as the national general secretary of AICC and the member of the most important highest decision making body of the party the Congress Working Committee headed by Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. This sudden high prized elevation of Harish Rawat is a huge rebuff to his detractors especially the current state party chief Pritam Singh who’d allegedly left no stone unturned to see Rawat being sidelined in the Uttarakhand’s Congress politics.

Delhi has about 25 to 30 lakhs inhabitants of Uttarakhand and in all nationally there are more than four to five crores Uttarakhandies who are majorly considered to be the followers of the saffron party directly or indirectly, but by Rawat’s elevation to such significant positions in Congress party he will be able to turn the pahadi tilt in Congress’s favour in addition his good say amongst the minorities and other sections of the society being also the Sewa Dal’s national Vice Chairman during the tenure of the then PM P. V. Narsimha Rao. Having started his political career as a student n youth leader from Gram Pradhan and block pramukh Harish Rawat, originally the Sanjay Gandhi brigade leader came into close proximity with the late prime minister Indira Gandhi during the 1984 when he was the incharge of the historic Garhwal election fought against the then political heavy weight and Indira’s bete noire H. N.Bahuguna.

Several times MP from Almora and Haridwar, Rawat lost elections for at least five times. Always in the run and organisationally active from his Sewa Dal times to the days of Uttarakhand movement, Harish Rawat was instrumental in raising the Hill Council issue to divert the attention from the core issue of separate Uttarakhand movement but later on played a pivotal role in getting the separate Uttarakhand issue included in the election menifesto of the Congress Party.

After the formation of Uttarakhand state when Narayan Dutt Tiwari was sworn in as the chief minister of Uttarakhand state the followers of Harish Rawat opposed the former’s nomination and protested widely in Uttarakhand as well as in New Delhi asking the Congress high command to make Rawat the state CM inlieu of Tiwari as Rawat was immensely instrumental in the party’s victory in Uttarakhand in 2002 in his capacity as the state Congress chief who campaigned extensively to ensure the Congress Party’s victory then.

Similarly when Vijay Bahuguna was sworn in as the state’s CM in 2014/15 Rawat’s followers from the hills protested outside Sonia Gandhi’s 10 Janpath house and demanded Rawat’s sworn in but of no avail.

However, Rawat was then made the union state labour and thereafter elevated asAgriculture minister at the centre during UPA 2 with a Rajya Sabha seat from Uttarakhand offered to one of his close relatives Mahara. Finally, after a long time in 2016 Rahul Gandhi replaced Vijay Bahuguna for being incompetent to handle the post Kedarnath disaster situation and brought Harish Rawat on the political saddle of the state, the hearty wish that Harish Rawat was nursing since ages.

After two years in 2017 the government of Harish Rawat was toppled by 11 Congress lawmakers who joined BJP lateron. Harish was involved in a sting highlighting his conversation with a journalist regarding horse trading of lawmakers to save his government. A CBI case was registered against him in 2017 n his government subsequently dissolved forthwith at the behest of the BJP led NDA rulinginthe centre.

In the elections held in 2017 Rawat lost from two assembly constituencies and the BJP got a historic majority with 57 lawmakers. But despite loosing heart and sitting at home Rawat remained extremely mobile, active and accecible to each and every worker running to and fro and vice- e- versa from Delhi to Uttarakhand n back to Delhi every alternative week.

He gave mango, kaafal ( Uttarakhand’s delicious fruit) and delicious Pahadi cusine parties to Uttarakhandies in Delhi and Uttarakhand and participated in every sit in and protest demonstration in Delhi and Uttarakhand including actve particpation in marriages, Birthday parties and even obituaries giving n clicking selfies with his followers and fans and here today he is the general secretary of AICC and the Congress Working Committee member. What’s your take friends?