New Uttarakhand Chief Minister Has Deep Roots In Student Politics

Pushkar Singh Dhami, the new Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, on his website says he has a good understanding of the issues in his state

Pushkar Singh Dhami, the new Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, is a two-time BJP MLA who represents Khatima constituency in the hill state's Kumaon region. He is the eleventh Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, and the third in four months after Trivendra Singh Rawat and Tirat Singh Rawat resigned from the post amid infighting. Mr Dhami, 45, is said to be close to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. He was also an Officer on Special Duty to former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Bhagat Singh Koshiyari. Mr Dhami started participating in youth politics for the first time in 1990. Till 1999, he worked with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the BJP's ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The new Chief Minister on his website says he has a good understanding of the issues in his state. After Uttarakhand was formed, he worked as an adviser to the former Chief Minister till 2002.