It sounds like the stuff of folklore - a gun was planted on an agricultural plot in Baghpat and now years later, it's yielding a harvest of firepower to mow down the most powerful Jat leader of the region. It may be Uttar Pradesh's wild west, but it's still incredible that the "gun culture" of Baghpat is today not only it's biggest claim to fame, it is also one of the major employment generators of the area. Much if it is due to the efforts of Rajpal Singh, one of India's most celebrated shooters who is credited with starting the first shooting club of the region around 15 years ago. The club claims to have produced over 400 shooters who have not only represented the country in various competitions, but have gone on to bag lucrative assignments as security personnel thanks to their special skill set. Today the region boasts of 20 private shooting clubs, thronged by local lads who see it as a surefire way to land a good job.
With Rajpal firmly in the corner of Satyapal Singh, hundreds of his "boys" have been campaigning for the former Mumbai Police Commissioner who is pitted against his own cousin and former political mentor, Ajit Singh. From what we hearing, not only did he donate the first gun for Rajpal's shooting club, for years he had also been donating a month's salary to fund its annual shooting competition, besides helping the boys get jobs in Mumbai. While that's a good enough reason for Rajpal to be supporting Modi's chosen candidate, it's interesting to note that Rahul Gandhi has an equal counter-claim for his loyalty. Apparently Rajpal's club started off with not one but two guns - the other one was donated by the Gandhi scion, who is also said to have been instrumental in lowering the age to have an arms license to 16.
There's much that Rajpal owes to the family - his first introduction came about when the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi summoned him to 10 Janpath in 1987 for a two-hour private shooting lesson. Rajpal went on to train not only his son Rahul but also Priyanka's son Raihan in the nuances of the sport, besides becoming an instructor to a galaxy of Congress leaders including Naveen Jindal, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Sachin Pilot. While the usually straight shooting Rajpal isn't denying the great debt he owes to the Gandhis, he does have an excuse for making the choice he did: Rahul gave the second pistol to Baghpat, while Satyapal gave the first one. Timing can be everything.
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