Rajnath Singh has been elected unopposed as the President of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) . He succeeded Nitin Gadkari, who decided not to contest for a second term following charges of alleged corruption.
Greeting Rajnath Singh on his appointment as the new president of Bharatiya Janata Party, Nitin Gadkari alleged a “political conspiracy” was behind his decision to opt against a second term.
“I congratulate him (Rajnath Singh). I have worked under his leadership… He has the ability to make us win the 2014 election under his leadership,” Gadkari said in a speech here.
“As far as the election for a second term is concerned, there had been attempts through a political conspiracy to link me to an issue I was not related to,” Gadkari said, referring to the allegations of corruption against him.
Yesterday, Nitin Gadkari submitted his resignation, and told media that he did so to get his name cleared of the allegations of corruption and financial irregularities.
The income tax department carried out on-field investigations at nine locations in Mumbai that belonged to the alleged shell companies related to the Purti Group. The group, however, said the companies on which the raids were carried out did not belong to it.
Corruption charges leveled against Gadkari include those of improper business dealings as the chairman of the Purti Group and land grab. He has, however, denied all the charges, adding that he is not linked to the Purti Group.
“They are maligning the party, I thought let the inquiry be over. I will not seek a second term as long as the inquiry is not over,” Gadkari told reporters.
He said he wanted to place the interests of his party before him, therefore, he decided not to seek another term.
“I felt the party should come first. The economic situation is bad; inflation is high; foreign exchange reserve is empty; and foreign investment is not coming. In such a situation, if the people look for an alternate, they believe the BJP has the capacity to change the situation,” he said.
He added he will “keep working for the party”.
Gadkari’s resignation came after several senior BJP leaders expressed objection to a second term being given to him as party president after corruption allegations were levelled against him.
Rajnath Singh is a former Uttar Pradesh chief minister and has been the President of BJP  twice.  Additionally, he has been  Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh anda Cabinet Minister in the National Democratic Alliance regime . He was previously president of the BJP youth wing and the BJP’s unit in his home state Uttar Pradesh.
Rajnath Singh was born in the small village of Bhabhaura in the Chandauli district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh in a Hindufamily. His father was Ram Badan Singh and his mother was Gujarati Devi. He was born into a simple farmer’s family in the region and went on to secure a masters degree in physics, acquiring first division results from the Gorakhpur University.
His previous stints with BJP as Party President has been said to be the most successful ones.
In 2006,  he  revitalized  the Party  by winning success  in Uttar Pradesh’s municipal elections and  in early 2007  a phenomenal victory in Uttarakhand and Punjab. It was  during his leadership that BJP re-established its dominance  in the municipal elections across Delhi, Chandigarh and Maharashtra. The Assembly elections in Gujarat added a new dimension to the string of successful electoral victories by the BJP in 2007.
The Fame of Rajnath Singh shot all time high when in 2008,  BJP formed its first ever Government in South India after rising  to power in Karnataka. The same year BJP registered phenomenal victories in Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarsh.
Even his critics agree that his tenure was the most successful phase in the BJP’s history when it managed to win 5 Assembly elections(Uttranchal, Punjab, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh) in a row.