Tirath Singh Rawat was denied the BJP ticket to contest the Uttarakhand assembly polls in 2017. Four years later, the party has picked him for the top job in the state.
Replacing Trivendra Singh Rawat ahead of next year’s assembly polls, the new CM, sworn in Wednesday, has the reputation of being a simple and down-to-earth leader.
Though a first-time MP, Mr Rawat has held key organisational positions with the party, both in the state and at the Centre.
The decision to appoint Rawat was taken at the BJP legislative party meeting in Dehradun. The developments come a day after Trivendra Singh Rawat relinquished his post as chief minister Tuesday.
Considered close to Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP veteran B.C. Khanduri, the 56-year-old Rawat has served as the Uttarakhand BJP president between 2013 and 2015. He was the BJP national secretary till he was picked as CM.
As the state BJP president, he is credited with the party’s 2014 Lok Sabha win in Uttarakhand.
“The central leadership realised his importance as a key organisational leader due to his management of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections when the party won all five seats whereas in 2009, the Congress had bagged all five seats,” said a BJP leader. “He has a clean image and has seldom courted controversies.”