RANK 8 – Yogi Adityanath, 44
Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh | (Rank 2016: New entry)
THE REASON
For being chief minister of India’s most populous state, where the BJP and its allies have come to power with a thumping mandate, winning 325 of 403 seats in the assembly elections. A key Hindutva face of the BJP, he surprised nearly everyone by becoming the party’s choice to lead the state government.
THE WORK
When he pipped about half-a-dozen aspirants to the post of CM. Long seen as the fringe in the state BJP, he now represents the ‘mainstream’.
THE FUTURE
He faces the daunting task of balancing the demands of his office with those of his restive and aggressive supporters. How he does that will decide how effectively the BJP reaps its electoral harvest in UP. The crackdown on meat and the anti-Romeo squads have dominated headlines but the Yogi story is yet to unfold.
NOTE: He is fond of watches. Wears a Rado on his left wrist.
COMING UP THE NEXT ON RANK 9 SONIA GANDHI
