Gujarat cadre IAS officer joins BJP

Ahead of elections to the 12 seats of the Legislative Council in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat cadre IAS officer AK Sharma has joined BJP. Sharma is considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and had worked with him in Gujarat.

Lucknow: Gujarat cadre IAS officer A K Sharma, who recently took voluntary retirement from the service, joined the BJP here on Thursday, a party spokesperson said. Official sources said that Sharma, who has worked closely with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for 20 years, can be accommodated in the Uttar Pradesh cabinet.

A K Sharma, a 1988-batch officer from Mau district in Uttar Pradesh, is considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and had worked with him in Gujarat.

Sharma joined the party in the presence of state BJP president Swatantra Dev Singh and Deputy Chief Minister Dr Dinesh Sharma at the party headquarters here.

In a tweet, Swatantra Dev Singh welcomed Sharma into the party.

“Today former IAS officer Arvind Kumar Sharma was welcomed in the BJP family. The party will definitely get new impetus with Sharma’s capabilities and dedication who has been associated with the ideology of ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’,” he said.

Sharma had expressed his desire to work for the BJP and will be joining the party, BJP spokesperson Chandra Mohan had said earlier in the day.

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Sharma joins the BJP at a time the party is finalising candidates for elections to the 12 seats of the Legislative Council on January 28. The last date for the filing of nominations is January 18.

Asked if Sharma could be made a candidate, Chandra Mohan said the names are decided by the central leadership.

Talking to ETV Bharat, Sharma said, "I do not belong to a political family and I do not have any connections in the political spectrum. PM Modi has taken this decision and I will work for the welfare of the party."

Sharma had worked with Narendra Modi from 2001 to 2020. He initially worked in the Gujarat chief minister’s office and later in the PMO.

Sharma held the charge of the secretary (MSME) at the Centre before taking the voluntary retirement, sources said, adding that he had his schooling from Mau and did postgraduation from Allahabad University.

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With PTI inputs