Ready to apologise to Congress’s Harish Rawat: Harak Singh Rawat

Uttarakhand elections: Harak Singh Rawat, who was expelled from the BJP on January 16, said on Tuesday that he is ready to apologise to Congress leader Harish Rawat.

Updated on: Jan 19, 2022, 04:56:54 IST

By Neeraj Santoshi, Dehradun

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Harak Singh Rawat, who was expelled from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on January 16, said on Tuesday that he is ready to apologise to former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat, the chief election strategist of the Congress party for the assembly polls to be held on February 14.

Harak Singh Rawat speaks to the media on his dismissal from the Uttarakhand cabinet and expulsion from the BJP, ahead of the elections, in Dehradun on Monday. On Tuesday, he said he was ready to apologise to Congress leader Harish Rawat. (ANI)

“He (Harish Rawat) is my elder brother. I can apologise 100 times, or even one lakh times for Uttarakhand, its youth, its development,” Harak Singh said at a media briefing on a visit to New Delhi, indicating his willingness to rejoin the Congress, which he left in 2016.

Harak Singh was responding to Harish Rawat’s statements about him. “I stand by what have I said. Not just him but all those who were involved (in the 2016 rebellion ) should seek apology from the people of Uttarakhand and democracy,” Harish Rawat said earlier.

Harak Singh Rawat was one of the nine Congress lawmakers who rebelled against the Congress government headed by Harish Singh Rawat in March 2016, reducing it to a minority. The Centre imposed President’s rule in the state, although Harish Singh Rawat returned as CM after winning a trust vote in May. Harak Singh Rawat defected to the BJP and was elected on its ticket in 2017. He was expelled by the BJP earlier this month.

The decision to induct Harak Singh Rawat into the Congress will have to be a collective decision of the party, Harish Rawat said on Tuesday.

Harak Singh was expelled from the BJP for six years on Sunday and has since indicated that he wants to join the Congress ahead of the state elections.

Some Congress leaders in Uttarakhand, especially those close to Harish Rawat, are not happy with re-inducting someone involved in the 2016 mutiny into the party.

“What happened in 2016 weakened the democratic tradition in the whole country. It was a murder of democracy,” said Pradeep Tamta, Congress leader and Rajya Sabha member.

The Congress high command, however, may be keen on using Harak Singh Rawat to fight the incumbent BJP in some seats where he has influence.

Given his track record, Harak Singh Rawat has created a difficult situation for himself, said MM Semwal, professor of political science at Garhwal Central University.

“If the Congress takes him back, it will send a wrong signal in the party,” Semwal said. “But the Congress high command must be looking at the broader picture and may want to use him for hitting at the BJP, at least in some seats where he holds strong influence.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Neeraj Santoshi
Neeraj Santoshi is the Chief of Bureau for Hindustan Times in Uttarakhand, where he leads the state reporting team while covering government, politics, environment, wildlife, Uttarakhand High Court, and issues shaping the Himalayan region. With more than two decades in journalism across conflict zones, he has covered politically sensitive regions and environmentally fragile landscapes, and focused on stories that combine public interest with in-depth storytelling. An alumnus of Pune University with a Master’s in Communication Studies, he has reported extensively from Jammu & Kashmir (2003-2010), Madhya Pradesh (2010 to 2018 ) and Uttarakhand (Since 2018), covering subjects ranging from insurgency, elections and governance to wildlife conservation, mining, climate change, agriculture, human rights and social justice. He has covered politics and legislative assemblies of both Jammu & Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh over more than a decade. Before taking over as Chief of Bureau in Uttarakhand, he served as Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times in Madhya Pradesh and earlier reported for both Hindustan Times and The Indian Express in Jammu & Kashmir, where he covered state politics, environment and insurgency-related developments. Over the years, his stories have focused on environmental degradation, wildlife, illegal mining, governance and the changing social fabric of Himalayan states and Central India. He is particularly interested in long-form explanatory journalism, and stories that explore the intersection of ecology, conservation, governance and society. Outside the newsroom, Neeraj enjoys reading widely on neuroscience, consciousness studies, Artificial Intelligence and quantum physics, with a special interest in Kashmiri Tantric Shaivist traditions. He is also passionate about wildlife, mountaineering and the Himalayas, interests that continue to inform his reporting and deepen his understanding of the region he covers.Read More

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