IAS officer who worked closely with PM joins BJP in Lucknow after voluntary retirement

Arvind Kumar Sharma, the IAS officer who took voluntary retirement earlier this week, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Lucknow on Thursday.

An 1988 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre, Mr. Sharma has closely worked with Narendra Modi, each in the Chief Minister’s Office (Gujarat) and Prime Minister’s Office in Delhi for nearly 20 years. Mr. Sharma belongs to the Bhumihar caste and hails from Mau in Purvanchal.

Mr. Sharma held the publish of Secretary in the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) when he took voluntary retirement from service forward of his scheduled superannuation in July 2022.

Uttar Pradesh BJP president Swatantra Dev Singh mentioned Mr. Sharma’s entry into the BJP would elevate the stature and honour of the social gathering, and strengthen the State and Central governments in addition to the social gathering’s organisation.

“When good officials, good people from society, honest people come to the party, the party’s stature gets raised and due to the party Arvindji would also gain stature,” Mr. Singh mentioned at a press convention whereas inducting Mr. Sharma.

Mr. Sharma mentioned he hailed from a backward village in Purvanchal and bought recruited in the IAS job by way of exhausting work and battle. “To suddenly pick such a person who has no political background or political legacy and induct him into the party, this only Narendra Modi and BJP can do,” Mr. Sharma mentioned.

Though the BJP has not revealed Mr. Sharma’s new function in the social gathering or State authorities, his induction comes at a time the State is holding elections to fill 12 MLC posts. The BJP is anticipated to win a minimum of 10 out of the 12 posts and hypothesis is rife that Mr. Sharma could possibly be amongst these elected to the State Legislative Council.