Firebrand leader, taskmaster

Twenty-one years ago, the high priest of Gorakhnath Math and BJP MP Mahant Avaidyanath named disciple Yogi Adityanath as his successor. In the following years, Adityanath emerged as a firebrand Hindutva leader, taking up issues such as the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the uniform civil code, the ban on cow slaughter and an anti-conversion campaign.

After Avaidyanath left active politics in 1998, Adityanath contested on a BJP ticket and was elected to the 12th Lok Sabha as its youngest member at 26 years of age. He went on to be a five-time MP from Gorakhpur, and is now the chief minister of India’s most populous and most politically critical state.

Born Ajay Singh Bisht, Adityanath is the son of a forest ranger from Panchur in Uttarakhand’s Pauri Garhwal district. In the affidavit for the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council election on September 9, however, he mentioned his guru Avaidyanath as his father. After joining the sect, the science graduate started leading the life of an ascetic.

To strengthen his base as a mass leader, Adityanath launched in 2002 the Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV), a cultural and social organisation dedicated to Hindutva and nationalism.

Adityanath, 45, has been trying to maintain a balance between religion and governance. He is embracing the image of a tough taskmaster and a development icon.