Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, living up to his persona of a hard-task administrator with enviable fighting spirit against all odds, has retained his slot in the coveted ‘IE 100’ list of national English daily ‘The Indian Express’, figuring at number 24.
Significantly, the ranking of LG Sinha, who has secured a place in the prestigious list of “Most Powerful Indians” consecutively for the third time, has surged from 71 in 2022 to 24 this year.
In 2021, the Lieutenant Governor had secured 25th place in this list.
The prestigious list included the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the Minister for External Affairs S Jaishankar occupying top three slots respectively.
While enlisting qualities for placing the Lieutenant Governor of J&K at 24th spot, the national daily mentioned that it was “not easy to run Jammu and Kashmir, especially after the abrogation of its special status in 2019.”
“While it saw his predecessor being transferred in just a year after revocation of special status, Manoj Sinha has managed to cling on to power for almost three years now. Also at the Centre, the belief is that the dynasty reigns of the Abdullahs and the Muftis are passe and Jammu and Kashmir needs new faces. Sinha has been brought in to identify younger politicians, who can bridge the gap with seniors of the region as well as bring disparate sections of the society together,” the daily specified the rationale behind picking up LG Sinha among the “Most Powerful Indians” of 2023.
LG Sinha, who thrice served as the Member of Parliament, is the second Lieutenant Governor of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. A seasoned politician from Uttar Pradesh, he is a trained Civil Engineer with degrees of B Tech and M Tech from IIT (BHU) Varanasi.
He became a Member of Parliament for the first time in 1996 and then in 1999 and 2014. During his third term in 2014, he was appointed as the Minister of State for Railways and in 2016 served as the Union Minister of State (independent charge) of the Ministry of Communication. He took over the charge of the Lieutenant Governor of J&K on August 7, 2020.
Describing his “Power Punch”, the national daily Indian Express pointed out that after a long gap, “Sinha managed to get the first Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the Valley.”
“A two-screen cinema multiplex and a big shopping mall, now in the works, are two big visible changes that he is pushing for despite the security challenges. In pushing forward the development agenda, the L-G has always acknowledged that the conflict has scarred both the communities, which adds to his credibility,” it added.
The Indian Express specified that with the assembly elections overdue, Sinha’s biggest challenge would be to ensure a conducive atmosphere for free and fair elections in Jammu and Kashmir.
Picking one of the endearing qualities of Sinha, the national daily mentions that LG Sinha is fond of quoting from Ramdhari Singh Dinkar’s poems, especially the epic Rashmirathi (1952).
Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, BJP president JP Nadda, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Chairman Reliance Industries Limited Mukesh Ambani and National Security Advisor of India Ajit Doval figured at 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 slots in the list respectively.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also found a place at number 15 with an improved ranking.
