india

Updated: Jun 20, 2020 23:28 IST

Arun Jaitley, who passed at Delhi’s AIIMS hospital on Saturday afternoon due to multiple organ failure, wore many hats throughout his life: activist, lawyer, politician, cricket administrator, minister and a friend.

The affable Delhi-born leader rose through the ranks of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and played the role of chief troubleshooter for his organisation in the courtroom, parliament and political battlefield.

While essaying one such role in 2005, he convinced the BJP to accept Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar as the chief ministerial face of the coalition. On every visit to Delhi, Jaitley won’t forget to treat Kumar to his favourite spongy rasgullas from Gopala, a famous shop in the Capital. On his every visit to Patna, Jaitley would carry them for Kumar.

“Senior BJP leader and former finance minister Arun Jaitley’s death is extremely sad. He achieved great heights in public life through his political and personal values. May his soul rest in peace,” tweeted Nitish Kumar.

Watch: Political leaders across party lines react to Arun Jaitley’s death

The veteran BJP leader earned the reputation of a leader with a Midas touch after winning the BJP crucial elections between 2004 and 2014 in states where he was the in-charge, such as Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka.

He was a friend to Narendra Modi since the latter’s days as the general secretary (organisation) of the BJP. Jaitley introduced Modi to “Lutyens’ Delhi” and remained a strong backer during his days as Gujarat chief minister.

It was the support from Jaitley that helped Modi’s anointment as the chief of the BJP’s campaign committee at the party’s executive meeting in Goa in 2013. The decision saw Nitish Kumar revolting against the BJP and walking out of the NDA. Still, Jaitley managed to have a warm relationship with both.

Nitish, however, returned to the BJP fold in 2017 having ditched Lalu Prasad Yadav and the Congress.

He was one of the most modern, suave and English-speaking faces of a party that struggled for years to shed the image of being an orthodox outfit.

Jaitley was the darling of the media, and redefined the way the BJP engaged with television channels and newspapers by grooming a generation of spokespersons and leaders who now occupy high offices in the Narendra Modi government.

As chief spokesperson of the party, he was always at the forefront to distill the BJP’s position on critical matters in a form that rest of the party could easily pass on to the masses.

His official residence on Ashoka Road was the party’s ‘media war room’ for years. Party spokespersons would visit his bungalow, where he never lived during the years it was allotted to him, for strategy meetings and Jaitley would articulate to them - over a cup of jasmine tea – the BJP’s response for television debates.

Jaitley will be cremated tomorrow at Delhi’s Nigambodh Ghat.