Lucknow: “Humko na chahne waale log… aajkal kuch zyada hee sakriye hain (those who do not like me… have become unusually active these days)”—with this cryptic remark on social media, Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister Arvind Kumar Sharma appeared to signal his frustration over claims that he travels with a 27-car convoy.
A “fake reel” making the claim has surfaced on social media at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been urging people to reduce fuel consumption.
Sharma quickly issued a clarification on X, stating that he uses only three vehicles during district tours and two in Lucknow, and that legal action would be taken regarding the “fake reel”.
हमको न चाहने वाले लोग आज कल कुछ ज़्यादा ही सक्रिय हैं।
हमें निरंतर सजग रखने के लिए उनका धन्यवाद।
लेकिन हर बार की तरह विरोधी इस बार भी झूठ बोल रहे हैं।
भदोही के प्रवास के दरम्यान हमारे काफिले में मात्र तीन गाड़ियाँ थीं। मैं राजधानी में दो गाड़ी और जिला प्रवास में तीन गाड़ी… https://t.co/0G7k47a9d0
— A K Sharma (@aksharmaBharat) May 16, 2026
People close to the minister claim the controversy is part of a larger pattern that has followed Sharma ever since the 1988-batch Gujarat-cadre officer quit the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) and entered politics in 2021, and that a section within UP’s political circle was never comfortable with his entry.
Despite holding two heavyweight portfolios, power supply and urban development in the state, Sharma also appears to have struggled to match the political image that accompanied his joining of the BJP in 2021, days after taking voluntary retirement. He was then projected as a possible new “power centre” in UP.
Five years later, however, much of the spotlight around him has come through controversies and confrontations, including clashes with government officials. At other times, he has been the target of trolling on social media.
Several BJP leaders privately admit that Sharma has struggled to adapt to grassroots politics.
Speaking to ThePrint, a senior UP BJP leader said Sharma still operates more like a bureaucrat than a politician. “Sharmaji still functions in a bureaucratic way, like a strict officer. But that is not the nature of politics,” the leader said.
“As a public representative, you have to face criticism patiently. You cannot simply say no to people’s work. Since he came with the backing of the Centre, he never developed strong bonds with local leaders or even with many of his cabinet colleagues, and perhaps never wanted to.”
The leader added that Sharma is seeking Mau district’s Madhuban assembly seat, currently held by the BJP, to contest from in the 2027 state polls.
When contacted by ThePrint over phone with queries regarding Sharma’s functioning and his equation within the party, UP BJP spokespersons declined to comment. ThePrint reached out to Sharma too over a call for a comment, but his office said he was not available to talk.
Criticism, confrontation & discontent
Sharma’s tenure as power minister has repeatedly made headlines for his confrontational style.
Just earlier this month, Sharma was in the spotlight after the state government decided to withdraw the mandatory prepaid smart meter system for electricity consumers and restore postpaid billing.
The move was seen as a major relief for lakhs of consumers who had complained about inflated bills, recharge-related disconnections and recurring technical glitches. Protests against smart meters had been reported from several UP districts.
Officials in the power department told ThePrint that making smart meters compulsory was Sharma’s decision, which got scrapped due to rising dissatisfaction over electricity supply and billing issues.
In July last year, a video of Sharma angrily shouting at officials of the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation went viral after widespread complaints about power cuts across the state.
Having returned from district inspections, Sharma accused officials of presenting a false picture of the ground situation.
In one clip viral on social media, he is purportedly heard saying: “You people are sitting here blind and deaf. You have no idea what the public is suffering or what they think about your department. Fake reports are being sent and the top leadership is being misled.”
The minister further alleged the power department had become disconnected from public concerns.
“The electricity department is not a moneylender’s shop that only collects bills. It is meant to serve the people,” he said, questioning why entire feeders and village lines were disconnected even when some residents paid their bills regularly.
He further remarked: “People are receiving electricity bills worth crores by mistake, and then they have to pay bribes to get them corrected. Vigilance raids happen at the wrong places while large-scale power theft continues unchecked.”
At another meeting the following day, Sharma escalated his criticism and openly warned officials with action.
“I have been explaining things for three years. Now the time is over,” he said in another viral video. “If officers think the minister cannot transfer or suspend them, then remember, if I release an arrow like Lord Ram, nobody from Delhi to Rashtrapati Bhavan will be able to save them.”
Interestingly, Sharma has never denied his presence in these videos.
In July last year, another viral video from Sultanpur purportedly showed him chanting “Jai Shri Ram” while facing angry residents protesting against power cuts.
The opposition quickly targeted the BJP-led state government. SP leader Akhilesh Yadav shared the clip on X, stating that the UP government had failed to improve power generation and distribution despite years in office.
“When the public asks questions, BJP leaders have no answers left. Now, even their own power goes off,” Akhilesh added.
Officials in his department told ThePrint that Sharma has grown increasingly frustrated due to mounting criticism over power outages both online and on the ground.
“Local traders, MLAs and the public have been confronting him openly over power cuts, This year also, he is facing the same issue,” said one senior official.
Adding to the mounting pressure over electricity supply, BJP MLA from Lucknow North Neeraj Bora Tuesday wrote to Sharma seeking an explanation for the frequent power cuts in his constituency.
In the letter—another indication of the growing discontent with even ruling party legislators publicly raising concerns before the government—the MLA requested Sharma to depute senior officials to the area and clarify the reasons behind the repeated outages.
Controversies have followed Sharma beyond the power department as well.
During a visit to Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan last year, local traders protesting against the proposed temple corridor project and trust formation raised slogans against him.
The agitation, which had been ongoing for weeks, intensified during Sharma’s visit, with protesters shouting “corridor hai-hai”.
Sharma’s political career
A Gujarat-cadre officer, Sharma is considered close to the PM and worked with Modi since his days as Gujarat chief minister. During that period, Sharma also held the position of Gujarat Infrastructure Development Board (GIDB) chief executive, a position that earned him the reputation of an infrastructure expert.
Sharma was secretary in the Chief Minister’s Office until Modi moved to New Delhi, where Sharma joined the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as joint secretary. He was promoted to the rank of additional secretary in 2017 and remained with the PMO till April 2020.
During the Covid migrant crisis in 2020, he was appointed secretary in the MSME ministry before taking voluntary retirement and joining the BJP in January 2021.
At the time, there was intense speculation that Sharma could become deputy CM of UP. While that never happened, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath handed him two key ministries after returning to power in 2022.
Referring to Sharma’s working style, Manoj Kumar Kaka, spokesperson of the rival Samajwadi Party, claimed that he had become a political liability for the BJP.
“BJP upar se logon ko janta par thopti hai (the BJP imposes leaders on the people from the top),” Kaka said, also questioning Sharma’s achievements since joining active politics.
“Tell us one major achievement of Sharmaji in the last five years. We have never even heard the CM publicly praising him from the stage. There is clearly an internal rivalry,” he alleged.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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