Revision as of 20:21, 30 March 2021

A brief biography

Till Mar 2021

Shivani Azad & Ishita Mishra, March 11, 2021: The Times of India

As a child, the sixth and youngest son of a fitter man with the railways, Tirath Singh Rawat was a mediocre student in school who maintained a low profile and was more comfortable away from the spotlight. In fact, his family worried if he would do anything “worthwhile” in life. But his virtue, they recalled, was his quiet patience.

“Every time we took him to the market, he wouldn’t buy anything for himself. Other kids would rush to pick up things they liked. We always appreciated that calm contentment,” said Tapeshwari Devi, Rawat’s eldest sister-in-law, who saw him growing up in his formative years. “He got that from his father Kalam Singh.” Kalam Singh was a fitter man with the railways, checking the safety fittings of train wagons. His mother Gaura Devi was a homemaker. “He had been active in politics from a very early age. He joined R S S when he was in Class XI. We were worried he would not be able to do anything in life,” the CM’s eldest brother Jaswant Singh Rawat, 70, told TOI.

After school too, the family was worried. “He proved us wrong with his success in politics,” he added. “When news of his being chosen as the CM reached our native Siron village in Pauri, it broke into celebration.” Back home in Dehradun, his wife Rashmi was also a little unprepared. “I always knew the party had faith in his potential and that he will, one day, be given some key responsibility,” Rashmi, an associate professor in psychology at DAV College in Dehradun, said. The couple has a daughter, Akanksha.

Career

2021 March: CM

‘Dark horse’ Tirath Rawat is Uttarakhand’s 10th CM Takes Over Ahead Of Next Yr’s State Polls Kautilya Singh & Ishita Mishra

Dehradun:

The five-day-long political turmoil that led to Trivendra Singh Rawat resigning from the CM’s post ended with Pauri MP Tirath Singh Rawat taking over as the 10th CM of Uttarakhand. He was administered the oath of office.

Earlier, amid intense speculations on who would be chosen by the BJP leadership for the top post, Rawat, 56, emerged as the dark horse. Other names in circulation for the CM’s post were those of Union education minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, state tourism minister Satpal Maharaj and higher education minister Dhan Singh Rawat among others. Tirath Rawat, whose name was proposed by Trivendra Rawat at the legislative party meeting held at the BJP office in Balbir Road, is a close aide of former CM BC Khanduri and a former R S S and ABVP member.

Served as 1st edu minister of U’khand

Regarded as a grassroot politician, he is said to have a good understanding of the party’s organisational set-up, which is why as per insiders he was chosen for the key post just as BJP is gearing up for assembly polls to be held next year. Rawat has served as the first education minister of Uttarakhand, BJP state chief, the party’s state general secretary as well as BJP’s national secretary. He was MLA from Chaubattakhal in Pauri from 2012 to 2017, and opted out of the race in favour of Satpal Maharaj in 2017 assembly polls.

In 2019, he was fielded as BJP candidate from Pauri Lok Sabha seat against his mentor BC Khanduri’s son Manish Khanduri who was fighting on a Congress ticket. He won with over 3 lakh votes.