Delhi Confidential: Rajnath Singh remembers Kalyan Singh in a special way

On the 90th birth anniversary of Kalyan Singh on Wednesday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh paid tributes to the late BJP veteran and OBC leader in a special way. The minister, who was BJP Uttar Pradesh unit president when Kalyan Singh was the state Chief Minister, posted old photographs of the two of them at the gates of Rashtrapati Bhavan. Rajnath Singh had played a key role in reinstating the Kalyan Singh government in 1998 after Governor Romesh Bhandari allowed the then leader of Loktantrik Congress, a split away group of the Congress, Jagdambika Pal (currently a BJP MP), to become the Chief Minister. The photographs Rajnath Singh posted on Wednesday were of him with Kalyan Singh when they had gone to Rashtrapati Bhavan, seeking the President’s intervention in saving the government and “protecting the Constitution and democracy”.

For The Love of Puttu

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu is expressive, especially in matters related to his love for food. On a tour to Kerala and Lakshadweep, the Vice President spent two days in Kochi with his family members. He made it a point to convey to Kerala Industry Minister P Rajeev that he enjoyed all the dishes prepared by the staff at the state-run guest house in Kochi. With Naidu developing a special like for one breakfast item — puttu (steamed rice flour) — his wife Usha sought its recipe from the staff. She also got hold of the special steaming vessels to prepare puttu back home in Delhi.

Problem of Plenty

With Covid cases rising in Delhi, ministries have been rushing to cancel physical events. On Wednesday, the Ministry of Science and Technology was saddled with an unusual problem after one such event, which was to be attended by minister Jitendra Singh, was cancelled. With the minister cancelling the event Tuesday evening, officials were left wondering what to do with all the food that had been ordered from a restaurant for the event. They eventually packed the food into 125 parcels and distributed it among ministry officials and personnel at the New Media Center.

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