Will Modi Remember Old Friend in Deciding Delhi CM?
PM Narendra Modi Image credit BJP
Spotlight on Modi Pick for CM Post in Delhi
By Manish Anand
New Delhi, February 8: Spotlight is now on next Chief Minister of Delhi after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registered an emphatic victory over the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). A number of hopefuls are hoping that Prime Minister Narendra Modi expresses his confidence in them.
The BJP may not be in a hurry to name the CM of Delhi soon. Various factors are being weighed to predict the possible Modi choice in Delhi for the CM post.
Modi within the BJP circles is known for backing old friends. Manohar Lal Khattar was a friend of Modi from old days. Modi was a pracharak of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS). Khattar was also a pracharak.
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“Modi and Khattar were close friends. Fast-forward 2014, Modi became Prime Minister. He set his eyes on Haryana. Khattar was asked to prepare to contest the Assembly elections,” recalled a senior BJP functionary.
The message in the Haryana unit of the BJP soon spread that Khattar is the undeclared CM candidate of the BJP. He also became the CM of the state.
Khattar stayed in the post for almost two terms until dissension against him spread in the Haryana unit of the party. “Modi gave him an honourable exit. The BJP asked Khattar to contest the Lok Sabha elections,” added the BJP functionary.
He was appointed a Union Minister in the third term of the Modi government. Modi also had rewarded his old friend Radha Mohan Singh by inducting him as the Union Minister.
Modi was also a close friend of former Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma. Modi was a BJP functionary. Verma was the CM of Delhi.
Verma was also popular as a grassroot leader. “He was accessible to the people. He met the people even at early hours and went extra distance to look into complaints,” said a senior BJP functionary.
Parvesh Singh Verma defeated former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi Assembly seat on Saturday. Verma became a giant killer. His supporters are raising demands that he be made the Chief Minister of Delhi.
Old timers pointed out that Modi’s friendship with Parvesh Singh Verma’s father may be a possible factor in deciding the name of the next CM of Delhi. Modi on some occasions from public meetings has patted on the shoulder of Parvesh Singh Verma.
The former Lok Sabha MP from West Delhi is also known as a close confidante of Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah. By defeating, Parvesh Singh Verma has a natural claim on the post of the Chief Minister, said a senior BJP functionary.
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