The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday, 19 June, named Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s close aide and former bureaucrat AK Sharma, as the party vice president for the Uttar Pradesh unit.
This comes amid reports of dissent within the party in UP.
It also comes after weeks of speculation that Sharma, MLC and former Indian Administrative Service officer, would be made a minister in the state.
He was sent to Varanasi, PM Modi's Lok Sabha constituency, earlier in 2021 to oversee the fight against COVID-19.
Who Is AK Sharma?
Sharma is a 1988-batch former IAS officer from the Gujarat cadre, who joined the BJP in January this year.
He hails from the Mau district of Uttar Pradesh.
Sharma is Bhumihar by caste and has graduated in political science from Allahabad University.
He joined as secretary to Narendra Modi in 2001, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat.
He thereafter continued to work with him after he became prime minister in 2014.
He took over as MSME secretary in April 2020.
"Many thanks to the national and state leadership of the party for making Uttar Pradesh BJP state vice-president. I will continue to serve the society, the state and the country with the help of my friends under the guidance of seniors," tweeted Sharma after the announcement, tagging PM Modi and BJP President JP Nadda.
Elections for the 403-seat Uttar Pradesh assembly elections are due in 2022.
(With inputs from NDTV).
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)