PM Modi praises Amit Shah – sparks speculation of succession
PM Modi praises Amit Shah – sparks speculation of succession
PM Modi on Tuesday showered praises on Amit Shah on emerging as the longest-serving home minister of the country and saying that it was “just the beginning”, sparking speculations in the BJP over the intended message behind the remark.
Amit Shah, who assumed office as Home Minister on May 30, 2019, on Tuesday,
5 August completed a record stint of 2,258 days. He eclipsed BJP veteran L.K. Advani’s 2,256-day tenure and his
record coincided with the sixth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, a resolution pushed by him months following his taking charge of the key ministry.
Speaking at an NDA parliamentary meet where he was felicitated for Operation Sindoor, Modi showered praises on Shah and congratulated him on the record saying “Today, he wants to congratulate Amit Shahji for emerging the country’s longest-serving home minister. Earlier, our Advaniji held that record and now he (Shah) has surpassed it,” Modi was learnt to have told the closed-door meeting.
Modi amidst taking a brief pause before completing the sentence said they have a long way to go from here,” appearing to willfully couch his message with “we” instead of using “he”.
Modi lauded Shah for his “landmark” achievements as the home minister, referring to“uniting the NDA parties”.
The remark swiftly turned out to be a subject of hushed discussion among BJP MPs in Parliament corridors against the backdrop of a debate in the wider Sangh Parivar over Modi’s successor.
Last month RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had stressed the need for leaders to step aside gracefully after a certain age to make way for the new generation, swivelling the spotlight on the BJP’s unwritten retirement age of 75 enforced by Modi-Shah ostensibly to sideline many party stalwarts.
Modi’s loaded message comes at a time when the RSS is trying to free the party organisation from the iron grip of Modi-Shah. The RSS has been insisting on a strong leader and not a “rubber stamp” as the next BJP president, leading to a deadlock.
“Modiji did appear to indicate that Amit bhai has a long way to go since he is just 60 now. It could be a message to the party MPs that Amit bhai deserves to be his (Modi’s) successor,” a BJP MP said. Some others, however, picked on the word “we” and felt it would be wrong to interpret that the remark was intended for Shah.
While Amit Shah has always been the second most powerful leader in the current dispensation, he drew fresh attention for his role in the Operation Sindoor debatein the monsoon session of
Parliament.
Shah had made a powerful intervention during the debate in the Lok Sabha, earning praises from Modi. Taking to his X he posted important details about Operation Sindoor and Operation Mahadev, which have played a vital role in eliminating cowardly terrorists.What followed was read as an “important hint” by ruling party leaders and also the Sangh Parivar. In the Lok Sabha, Modi replied to the Sindoor debate but fielded Shah to do the job in the Rajya Sabha.
As per BJP old-timer “Amit Shah replacing Modi for the reply in the Rajya Sabha should be seen as a very important development. It clearly indicated who Modi wanted as his successor. Adding that Modi’s message was significant given the emergence of Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath as Modi’s successor.
The Opposition had walked out of the Rajya Sabha in protest after Modi did not turn up to reply to the Sindoor debate. Shah told the Opposition that Modi was presentin Parliament, adding: “Face me, why do you want to call the PM?”
Some BJP ministers, too, rushed to hail Shah. “Heartiest congratulations to Shri Amit Shah ji for becoming the longest-serving Union Home Minister in India’s history.
News Edit KV Raman
