New Delhi: Former IAS officer Divya Mittal on Thursday launched her political party, Jan Neeti Bharat, and announced that it will contest the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, ending weeks of speculation about her political plans.
Mittal unveiled the party's name and electoral plans through a video message posted on social media platform X. "Politics rules over you. In Jan Neeti, you will be the ones who rule," she said, outlining a vision in which citizens stay at the centre of policymaking.
Three guiding principles
According to ET Now, Mittal laid out three principles that will guide the new outfit: giving citizens a direct voice in policymaking, basing public decisions on people's needs rather than identity, and holding governments accountable to the public throughout their tenure.
She said governments should remain answerable to citizens for the full five-year term rather than only around election time, and argued that ordinary people are too often shut out of decision-making by established power structures.
From bureaucracy to ballots
Mittal, a 2013-batch IAS officer, opted for voluntary retirement from service on August 30 after a 13-year administrative career, and announced her entry into politics on September 29. Her resignation from the Uttar Pradesh cadre was accepted by the state government on September 15, ET Now reported.
An alumna of IIT Delhi and IIM Bengaluru, Mittal also worked as a Wall Street trader before joining the civil services. During her administrative career she served as district magistrate of Sant Kabir Nagar, Mirzapur and Deoria in Uttar Pradesh.
The Hindustan Times reported that Mittal intends to contest from Mirzapur, where she served as district magistrate from September 2022 to September 2023. Mirzapur is regarded as a stronghold of Union minister and Apna Dal (S) chief Anupriya Patel, who has won the Mirzapur Lok Sabha seat in 2014, 2019 and 2024. The BJP-Apna Dal (S) alliance won all five assembly seats in the district in the 2022 elections.
During her Mirzapur tenure, Mittal drew public appreciation for development initiatives, including the provision of piped drinking water to Lahuria Dah, a remote hilly village, in August 2023, ending a decades-old water crisis.
Sources:
The Hindu: Former IAS officer Divya Mittal announces new party, to contest 2027 Uttar Pradesh polls
Hindustan Times: Mittal's 'Mission Mirzapur': Ex-IAS officer launches party, eyes 2027 polls
ET Now: Former IAS officer Divya Mittal launches Jan Neeti Bharat, to contest 2027 UP assembly polls
Mittal unveiled the party's name and electoral plans through a video message posted on social media platform X. "Politics rules over you. In Jan Neeti, you will be the ones who rule," she said, outlining a vision in which citizens stay at the centre of policymaking.
Three guiding principles
According to ET Now, Mittal laid out three principles that will guide the new outfit: giving citizens a direct voice in policymaking, basing public decisions on people's needs rather than identity, and holding governments accountable to the public throughout their tenure.
She said governments should remain answerable to citizens for the full five-year term rather than only around election time, and argued that ordinary people are too often shut out of decision-making by established power structures.
From bureaucracy to ballots
Mittal, a 2013-batch IAS officer, opted for voluntary retirement from service on August 30 after a 13-year administrative career, and announced her entry into politics on September 29. Her resignation from the Uttar Pradesh cadre was accepted by the state government on September 15, ET Now reported.
An alumna of IIT Delhi and IIM Bengaluru, Mittal also worked as a Wall Street trader before joining the civil services. During her administrative career she served as district magistrate of Sant Kabir Nagar, Mirzapur and Deoria in Uttar Pradesh.
The Hindustan Times reported that Mittal intends to contest from Mirzapur, where she served as district magistrate from September 2022 to September 2023. Mirzapur is regarded as a stronghold of Union minister and Apna Dal (S) chief Anupriya Patel, who has won the Mirzapur Lok Sabha seat in 2014, 2019 and 2024. The BJP-Apna Dal (S) alliance won all five assembly seats in the district in the 2022 elections.
During her Mirzapur tenure, Mittal drew public appreciation for development initiatives, including the provision of piped drinking water to Lahuria Dah, a remote hilly village, in August 2023, ending a decades-old water crisis.
Sources:
The Hindu: Former IAS officer Divya Mittal announces new party, to contest 2027 Uttar Pradesh polls
Hindustan Times: Mittal's 'Mission Mirzapur': Ex-IAS officer launches party, eyes 2027 polls
ET Now: Former IAS officer Divya Mittal launches Jan Neeti Bharat, to contest 2027 UP assembly polls
