Ram Nath Kovind's journey from mud house to Rashtrapati Bhavan

Kovind's ability to keep a low profile was not the only reason that Modi and Shah handpicked him

In the fourth week of May, Ram Nath Kovind was called to New Delhi to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 71-year-old assumed that the meeting had something to do with his gubernatorial assignment in Bihar but was surprised to be told that he was one of the nine names being considered for the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA’s) presidential candidate.

Unlike some of the other nominees, Kovind’s name was not discussed in the media. Even his closest friends and relatives had no idea that Kovind could succeed Pranab Mukherjee as India’s President, until Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah