Highlights
- Arvind Kumar Sharma joined the party in Lucknow
- He is amongst most trusted aides of PM Modi
- The 1988 batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre is from Mau in UP
New Delhi:
A former IAS officer who has spent years in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s group and is amongst his most trusted aides, joined the BJP today. Arvind Kumar Sharma joined the party in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow.
Mr Sharma is tipped for the UP legislative council and may well be provided an critical post in the UP government of Yogi Adityanath. Elections to the 12 seats of the Legislative Council are due on January 28.
The bureaucrat was Secretary in the centre’s Ministry for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). His voluntary retirement this week came as a surprise to lots of but by all accounts, he is set for a important political function in Uttar Pradesh.
The 1988 batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre is from Mau in UP.
Mr Sharma worked with PM Modi not just in Delhi but also when he was Chief Minister of Gujarat ahead of 2014. He joined him as Secretary in 2001, when Mr Modi started his stint as Gujarat Chief Minister.
The low profile officer was a aspect of the Prime Minister’s Office as nicely as the Chief Minister’s Office, sources mentioned. Over practically two decades, Mr Sharma earned the Prime Minister’s trust with his final results-driven strategy, BJP leaders say.
When PM Modi was in Gujarat, Mr Sharma was chief executive of the Gujarat Infrastructure Development Board. He joined the PM’s Office in 2014, when the BJP came to energy following a landslide victory.
Last year, Mr Sharma was moved to the crucial MSME ministry in May, when the government was working on relief for the sector from the coronavirus lockdown.