Ex-bureaucrat now in eye of the storm ahead of Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls

His entry into the BJP in January this year after taking voluntary retirement from IAS had raised eyebrows within the state BJP leaders as they expected him to be given an important role in the party organisation or the government, owing to his close proximity with prime minister Narendra Modi.

Born in 1962 at Kajha Khurd village in Uttar Pradesh's Mau district, about 350 kilometres from here, former IAS officer Arvind Kumar Sharma, who was considered to be close to Modi, continues to be an enigma for the Uttar Pradesh BJP leaders.

Although he was made the vice-president of the state BJP, none in the BJP state unit is ready to speak about him and his possible role in the state which would be going to the polls early next year.

Sharma, a Gujarat cadre ex-bureaucrat, joined the BJP in January this year, days before the state legislative council polls. He was later nominated as a BJP candidate in the poll.

There were reports that chief minister Yogi Adityanath was not in favour of inducting Sharma in his Cabinet as there are chances of him emerging as a rival to him after the next year's assembly poll in the event of a BJP victory.

Some media reports claimed that Sharma's induction in the ministry had 'strained' the relations between Adityanath and Modi though the BJP rejected it.

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Adityanath's apprehensions that Sharma might emerge as a possible contender for the top post in the state were primarily based on the latter's close proximity with Modi.

Sharma was the secretary in the ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) at the Centre and had taken voluntary retirement before joining the BJP.

Sharma served with Modi when he was the chief minister of Gujarat. He was later shifted to the Centre when Modi became prime minister in 2014. Sharma, who was a postgraduate from Allahabad University, also had a doctorate degree.

He was associated with Modi's ambitious 'Vibrant Gujarat' scheme while the latter was chief minister of Gujarat, and was credited with bringing top industrialists into the state.

Sources in the state BJP said Sharma had been instrumental in facilitating the shifting of the Nano Plant in Gujarat from Bengal following protests there.

Sharma was also said to have earned the praise of Modi for his efficient handling of relief and rescue operations after the earthquake at Bhuj in Gujarat in 2001.

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Soon after Modi became the prime minister, Sharma was shifted to Delhi and became a joint secretary in the PMO. He later became an additional secretary. Many BJP leaders in UP felt that Sharma was the "eyes and ears" of the prime minister.

It was also perceived in the BJP circles here that Sharma had been sent to UP to keep an eye on the important developmental projects and ensure that they were implemented properly and also completed on time.

The central BJP leadership was reportedly not happy with Adityanath's handling of the Covid-19 pandemic in the state and felt that it might adversely impact its prospects in the next year's assembly poll.

There were speculations that Sharma could join the Uttar Pradesh ministry as deputy chief minister.

The speculations gained momentum after Modi heaped praise on the former bureaucrat for efficiently managing the Covid 19 situation in Varanasi, the Lok Sabha constituency of the prime minister, during a virtual interaction with health workers a few days ago.

"Sharma has a long experience of working in different departments... he has been a very capable officer... whether he is inducted in the cabinet is something which can be decided by the party leadership only," remarked a senior UP BJP leader here. The ex-bureaucrat has also adopted two villages in his home district of Mau.

Sharma had also met Adityanath here a few days back but the BJP did not reveal what transpired at the meeting.

Sharma was tipped to be inducted into the state cabinet as deputy chief minister. UP already had two deputy CMs, namely Keshav Prasad Maurya and Dinesh Sharma. It was, however, not clear if one of the two Dy. CMs would be dropped or UP would have three deputy CMs.

Sources said that the Cabinet reshuffle could have been completed by now had it not been for the tussle of inclusion of Sharma.

Adityanath had recently visited Delhi and met Modi and union home minister Amit Shah. Sources said that the discussions focussed mainly on the next assembly poll and that the UP CM was asked to undertake a Cabinet reshuffle and rein in the disgruntled party leaders.

Now that Sharma has been made UP BJP vice-president, it will be interesting to see if he is inducted into the ministry.