Rajnath Singh: nothing wrong in praising the armed forces during the polls

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who is seeking a second term as MP from Lucknow, said in an interview that praising the armed forces from an election platform did not violate the model code of conduct.

His campaign has combined temple visits with meetings with Muslim clerics and visits to other places of worship, and several Muslim clerics have backed him. He has been meeting visitors at the residence of his son Pankaj Singh. In Lucknow he faces the SP-BSP alliance candidate Poonam Sinha, who has the support of her daughter, actor Sonakshi Sinha, and her husband, actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha, as well as Congress nominee Pramod Krishnam.

Nationalism and the forces

Asked about Congress allegations that the BJP was politicising the army’s valour, Singh said every Indian who valued nationalism was a patriot, and called the charge absurd. He said the party would praise the security forces regardless, adding that nothing was bigger than the nation and those who guard it.

Kashmir

Singh said that on returning to power the BJP would review both Article 370 and Article 35A to see whether they had helped the state, and would scrap them if they had not. He strongly condemned Omar Abdullah’s remark about two prime ministers. Asked whether this conflicted with Vajpayee’s call for insaniyat, Kashmiriyat and jamhooriyat, he said the party remained committed to justice and humanity, with justice for all and appeasement of none. He said Kashmiris wanted peace and development and the state had received major financial help under Modi.

The Lucknow contest

Singh said he was facing the contest calmly, had support from all sections and had never practised politics of caste, creed or religion. He said projects worth Rs 24,000 crore had been started for Lucknow. Asked about his son Neeraj touching the feet of the Congress candidate during the campaign, he said it was nice, as he had never engaged in politics of hatred.

What happened next

The BJP won 303 of the 543 Lok Sabha seats in 2019 and Narendra Modi began a second term on 30 May 2019. In August 2019 Parliament ended Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under Article 370 and reorganised the state into two union territories.

See also: Bharatiya Janata Party and political leaders.

Originally published on 4 May 2019. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Follow us