Amitabh Kant: The Sherpa who led the rough G20 diplomatic terrain

On August 25, a Kremlin spokesman announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin will not attend the G20 summit in India, scheduled for September 9 and 10. Exactly 10 days later, on September 4, China said its President Xi Jinping will skip the G20 event, for the first time ever.

With two influential leaders not attending, the mood had sagged, with skeptics doubting any breakthrough or a post-summit joint communique.

But the speculation and skepticism in the diplomatic and political corridors were proved wrong, when on the first day of the summit, a joint declaration called the ‘G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration’ was adopted and released. Not only did it come a day earlier (normally it is released at the end of the summit), but it also showed full consensus on such a contentious global issue. The 34-page document with 112 outcomes has been hailed globally and seen as the main point of India’s G20 presidency’s success.

How did it happen? Or rather, who made it happen?

This diplomatic ‘coup’ was staged by a G20 Sherpa, Amitabh Kant, a 1980-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Kerala cadre.

Kant, who is not a career diplomat, played a pivotal role in forging the consensus. He, however, humbly shares credit with two Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officers, Nagaraj Naidu Kakanur and Enam Gambhir.

“The most complex part of the entire #G20 was to bring consensus on the geopolitical paras (Russia-Ukraine). This was done over 200 hours of non-stop negotiations, 300 bilateral meetings, 15 drafts,” Kant said in a post on 'X'.

According to sources, there was a huge divide between the member countries on the Russia-Ukraine issue. The US, the UK and Germany wanted to strongly condemn the Russian war against Ukraine, while on the other side, China and Russia were insisting that there should be no mention of the subject.

But India not only managed to bridge this gulf but also forged a 100% consensus. Terming it a historic achievement, Kant said, “This is the first time that all 83 paras have 100% consensus.” The G20 New Delhi Leaders’ Declaration contains 83 paras, out of which 8 are on the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Brand baron

Kant has been focussing on his mission from the time he took over as India’s G20 Sherpa in July 2022. During the G20 Bali summit in 2022, he played a key role in forging a consensus and making sure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “not an era of war” phrase got reflected in the joint declaration.

Domestically, the G20 presidency has been used as a branding vehicle to burnish Modi’s image ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election. And, Kant seemed to be the appropriate choice, having authored books like ‘Branding India-An Incredible Story’ and ‘Incredible India 2.0’.

The popular slogan, 'Kerala: God’s Own Country', was Kant’s creation during his tenure in the Kerala government, where he served in different capacities, including as Secretary of Tourism and Managing Director of the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation. His sharp perception of branding led to another viral campaign, that of ‘Incredible India’, in 2002.

Journey to New Delhi

Kant’s Kerala tourism campaign is said to have caught the attention of the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his principal secretary Brajesh Mishra. At an event last year, Kant narrated his journey to New Delhi.

He was appointed joint secretary in the Centre’s tourism department. He also served as chairman and managing director of the India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) and chairman and CEO of the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC).

Steering Modi’s pet projects

An alumnus of St Stephen's College and Jawaharlal Nehru University, Kant has been Modi's 'go-to-guy' for almost a decade. When Modi was sworn in as Prime Minister on May 26, 2014, Kant was serving as secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion. Although it was a low-profile department, Kant emerged as a key person in the bureaucracy, driving Modi’s pet projects like Ease of Doing Business, Make-in-India and Start-up India.

Kant, who started his career as the sub-collector of Thalassery in Kerala’s Kannur district, got a post-retirement appointment as CEO of Niti Aayog, the think tank that Modi formed, replacing the Planning Commission. Kant was appointed CEO of Niti Aayog on February 17, 2016, for a fixed two-year term. However, he was given three extensions and served in that position until June 2022.

Barely a week after demitting the office of Niti Aayog, Kant was appointed G20 Sherpa. Considering the success of India’s presidency of G20, Kant seems to have delivered beyond expectations.

Will he get a bigger role in Modi’s team?