Rajnath Singh recalls Kalyan Singh's role in clearing anti-copying ordinance

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh speaking to ANI at Narora, UP. (Photo/ANI)
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh speaking to ANI at Narora, UP. (Photo/ANI)

Bulandshahr (Uttar Pradesh) [India], August 23 (ANI): Recalling his memories of former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said that the late leader took a firm decision on his proposal for an ordinance against copying.

Rajnath Singh served as an Education Minister in former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kalyan Singh's cabinet.

"In 1991, when Kalyan Singhji was the Chief Minister, I had the privilege of becoming the Education Minister in his government of Uttar Pradesh. I had proposed an anti-cheating ordinance in the cabinet but there was a difference of opinion among its members. People were saying that everyone will be angry if such a strict law is implemented and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will not come to power in the next assembly polls," Singh told ANI.

Rajnath Singh said the proposal could not get through twice and he met Kalyan Singh.

"I told him that the proposal has been prepared carefully with due diligence, keeping in mind the future of the youth of Uttar Pradesh. I urged that it should be passed. He did not take much time thereafter. In the next cabinet meeting, he took my proposal out of a whole lot of proposals and said it is the proposal of the Education Minister and no further debate will take place on it. And it was passed and a record was made," Singh said.

The union minister said Kalyan Singh was a strict administrator and wanted the administration to be fair.

"That's why he took such important decisions. I saw that he used to accept the truth in all situations. He was an efficient administrator and was strictly against corruption. His dedication to the welfare of backward communities and the downtrodden sections was evident in his work," Rajnath Singh said.

Noting that Kalyan Singh's contributions can "never be forgotten," he said the late BJP leader played an important role in the Ram Temple movement.

"Not only in Uttar Pradesh, people in the entire country accept the fact that he played an important role in the Ram Temple movement," the union minister said.

Rajnath Singh attended the last rites of Kalyan Singh today at Narora in the Bulandshahr district of Uttar Pradesh.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other cabinet ministers were also present.

Kalyan Singh passed away on August 21 at Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) in Lucknow, due to sepsis and multi-organ failure.

The two-time chief minister had also held various organisational posts in the BJP, both at the state and the central level. (ANI)