Brushing aside reports of differences with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has said that his relations with Modi was "too sacred, emotional and deep" and that he would ensure it is never spoilt even if he is "personally harmed".
The Home Minister also made it clear that Modi's primacy in the Union Cabinet was "very natural and not imposed".
Home minister Rahnath Singh with PM Narendra Modi. Agencies
"Let me tell you that in the past one-and-a-half years, our relationship has grown quite deep... Those who are speculating about our relationship are totally unaware of its depth.
"It is too sacred, emotional and deep to let anything spoil it. I will not let this happen even if I am personally harmed. You see, in my public life, credibility is the only capital I have earned. And I am determined not to fritter it away and lead the life of an animal (pashuvat jeevan jeena sweekar nahin)," the Home Minister was quoted as saying in the latest issue of 'Governance Now'.
Singh was responding to questions about his equation with Modi especially in view of the much-talked relations in the past between former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru and Atal Bihari Vajpayee with Sardar Patel and LK Advani respectively.
Singh, a former BJP President, sought to put speculation at rest that there was anything wrong between him and Modi. "If I have established a deep personal and emotional bond with a certain individual, I cannot think of harming him or her in any way. I cannot commit the sin of harming someone close to me simply because I have developed some differences with that person. This is not my politics."
Singh also appeared to admit that there may be some people nursing grievances against him "over some confusion" in the past. "I am open to talking to them and resolving the issues. You must have noted consistency in my conduct even when I faced friends-turned-foes in Uttar Pradesh. I have never used any derogatory description for even the worst of my adversaries and never harmed them," he said.
Singh said that the reported differences as speculated in the media between the Prime Minister and Home Minister "will remain a history" and the future will be different and not a repetition of the past.
"Let us bury this history and move ahead. And let me also explain that despite misgivings in the media Atalji and Advaniji shared a very cordial and mutually respectful relationship," he said.
When asked why he chose to join the government when he had expressed desire to remain as BJP President, Singh said that he had never decided for himself. "In this case, the party leadership in general and Prime minister Narendra Modi in particular asked me to take up this assignment in the government. I decided to go by the collective wisdom of the organisation," he said.
To a question whether he had any regrets conceding primacy to Modi and joining the government, Singh said he had never hankered for primacy in his political career.
"Those who know me can vouch for it that I have never asked for anything. So there is nothing to regret about. Yet, I would like to point out that in politics, the most popular leader gets primacy. You must have seen me conceding primacy to Modi even at the BJP national executive in Goa where he was declared the face of the party's campaign. I chose to speak before him, giving clear indications of his leadership position. He is the most popular leader of the country. Moreover, in the Indian cabinet system, the prime minister gets primacy....you see, even a family cannot run without conceding primacy to someone. In Modiji's case, his primacy is very natural and not imposed," he said.
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