Introduction
Hariharan Raja Sharma also known as H. Raja is an Indian politician. He started his political-social life as an RSS pracharak. He was a MLA representing the Karaikudi constituency in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from 2001 to 2006. He is one of the national secretaries of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Personal life
H. Raja was born to a brahmin family in a village called Melattur near Thanjavur to Hariharan Sharma. His father Hariharan Sharma worked as a professor in Alagappa University and died at the age of 88 in October 2017.
By profession, Raja is a chartered accountant.
Political career
H. Raja was a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh activist before he joined the BJP in 1980. He was elected as an MLA of the Karaikudi constituency from 2001–2006. He assumed several roles in BJP including district convener in 1991, followed by state secretary, state general secretary and then, national secretary in 2014. He was a candidate for the Lok Sabha in the 2019 election but lost to Karti Chidambaram.
Controversies
H. Raja is known for his rhetoric against political opponents. He used to call them as anti-Indians. Once he called journalists who asked questions on central government's policy as anti-Indians.
On March 22, 2018, H. Raja is very much known for his communal speechesfor which the High court requested the Chennai police to check his mental health
On 10 December 2017, Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India condemned H.Raja when the latter asked communist leader D.Raja to shoot his own daughter as she participated in JNU protests.
On October 9, 2017, The police filed a case against H. Raja for his malicious public speech against Periyar, Muslims and Christians in 2014. Recently the Madras High Court has directed the Chennai police to register an FIR against him for his alleged statement that would instigate violence between members of the two communities.
On September 17, 2017, BJP national secretary H. Raja failed in his bid to become the President of the Bharat Scouts and Guides (Tamil Nadu), after managing to secure only 52 of the 286 votes polled. He, however, refused to accept the result and called for the election to be countermanded.
On 22 October 2017, Actor Vishal, president of the Tamil Film Producers Council, strongly criticised Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national secretary H. Raja for conceding that he had watched parts of actor Vijay’s latest release Mersal online. Mr. Raja had told a Tamil private television channel that he had watched online a few scenes of the movie "which people said, had content which had hurt their sentiments."
On October 24, 2017, The BJP leader H. Raja was under fire over his remarks on the film Mersal's GST and Digital India monologues, was given police protection. That did not stop him from stoking further controversy by saying Mersal film hero Vijay is a Christian and hence the reason for the criticism of GST in his film. Posting a photo of actor Vijay's voter's ID and official letterhead, on his Twitter account, H. Raja indicated that the popular star is a Christian and his full name is C. Vijay Joseph
On March 6, 2018,A remark was posted from the verified Facebook page of BJP National Secretary H. Raja, stating,"Who is Lenin? What is his connection to India? What is the connection of communists to India?" Lenin's statue was destroyed in Tripura. Today Lenin's statue, tomorrow Tamil Nadu's EVR Ramaswami's statue. As soon as the DMK opposed the comment, H. Raja distanced himself from the Facebook post and said that the page was maintained by various administrators. The post was soon deleted.
On October 22, 2018, BJP Leader H Raja Apologises To Madras High Court for caught on camera abusing the police and the judiciary. [1]</ref>
In September 2019, A village in Tamil Nadu called Veppur where people printed and pasted poster across the village opposing his arrival for the upcoming Vinayagar Chathurthi festival. On the day of Vinayagar Chathurthi, the police of the village imposed 144 to prevent the entry of H. Raja and further communal fight that could be caused because of his statement.
On September 17, 2019 H Raja announced his party would trouble the schools run by DMK leaders if opposition parties resorted to protest against ‘Hindi imposition’. Raja told this to media during his trip to Sirkazhi.
Railway Board
Raja is the chairman of Passenger Amenities Committee which addresses the grievances of the passengers and ensures cleanliness, hygiene and safety of the passengers. This committee approved the printing of passenger train tickets in regional languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Gujarati or Odia.
Elections
Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Elections
H. Raja had represented as MLA of Karaikudi in the Tamil Nadu Assembly from 2001 to 2006.
| Year | Party | Constituency | Result | Votes gained | Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Karaikudi | Winner | 54,093 | 48.40% |
| 2006 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Alandur | 4th place | 9,298 | 3.27% |
| 2016 | Bharatiya Janata Party | Thyagaraya Nagar | 3rdplace | 19,888 | 14.01% |
Indian general elections (Lok Sabha)
H. Raja electoral performances in the Indian general elections (Lok Sabha).
| Year | Election | Party | PC Name | Result | Votes gained | Vote % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 13th Lok Sabha | Bharatiya Janata Party | Sivaganga | Runner | 2,22,267 | 36.34% | |
| 2014 | 16th Lok Sabha | Bharatiya Janata Party | Sivaganga | 3rdplace | 1,33,763 | 13.02% | |
| 2019 | 17th Lok Sabha | Bharatiya Janata Party | Sivaganga | 2ndplace | 2,33,860 | 21.56% | |
Scouts and Guides Elections 2017
H.Raja contested in Bharat Scouts and Guides (Tamil Nadu) in 2017 for the post of president and managed to secure only 52 of the 286 votes polled (18.18%) and lost against P.Mani who got 234 votes (81.82%). However Raja refused to accept his defeat and said the election has to be countermanded.