Yogi Adityanath is one of the most powerful political people of India today. He is the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, India’s largest state. His journey from being a small boy from Uttarakhand to becoming a well-known monk and then a big leader is quite interesting. Many people wonder how he reached such a high position. This post tells about his life, his association with Gorakhnath Math and his progress in Indian politics.
Yogi Adityanath was born Ajay Singh Bisht on 5 June 1972 in Panchur village of Pauri Garhwal, Uttarakhand. His father, Anand Mohan Bisht, was a forest ranger. Ajay was very good in studies. He completed his schooling and then went to PG Government College, Kotdwar for a degree. There, he first thought of joining a student group associated with the Communist Party of India (Marxist). But a student named Pramod Rawat convinced him to join ABVP, a student organization associated with RSS.
In 1992, Ajay wanted to contest the election of College Student Union Secretary. ABVP did not give him a ticket. He contested the election as an Independent candidate but lost badly and finished sixth. Subsequently, Ajay studied a master’s degree in Mathematics from Pandit Lalit Mohan Sharma College, Rishikesh.
Meanwhile, Ajay met Mahant Avaidyanath, head priest of Gorakhnath Math in Gorakhpur. Mahant Avaidyanath was his distant relative and was also an MP from Gorakhpur. In 1993, Ajay went to Delhi in search of a job. He did not get the job. Coincidentally, Mahant Avaidyanath was also in Delhi for medical treatment. During this time Ajay took care of him.
Mahant Avaidyanath asks Ajay to join Gorakhnath Math. In November 1993, Ajay moved to Gorakhpur without informing his family. On 15 February 1994, Mahant Avaidyanath made Ajay Bisht a disciple of the Nath sect and declared him as his successor. At the age of 21, Ajay Singh Bisht became Yogi Adityanath.
His family learned about his new life through a newspaper a few months later. He thought that he was working in Gorakhpur. His parents went to the monastery and were surprised to see him in the monk’s clothes. He protested at first, but later accepted his decision. After this Yogi Adityanath returned to his village to perform a traditional ritual. He begged his mother for alms, symbolizing his complete separation from the family bonds. After this, his family members also started calling him “Maharaj ji”.
To truly understand Yogi Adityanath’s journey, we have to understand Gorakhnath Math. The monastery is named after Guru Gorakhnath, a chief figure of the Nath sect. This spiritual tradition holds that its founder was Adinath, who is Lord Shiva himself. Matsyendranath was another important guru, and Guru Gorakhnath was his disciple. Gorakhnath organized the Nath sect and brought together many yoga practices.
Gorakhnath traveled throughout India to spread his teachings. He meditated in Gorakhpur, where his followers later built a monastery. It became the famous Gorakhnath Math. Gorakhpur city is also named after him.
Gorakhnath Math originally followed a tradition where only one persistent sound was kept alive. There was no idol worship there. The teachings of both Gorakhnath and Kabir were written on its walls. It was a secular monastery where people of all castes, religions and backgrounds were welcome. Once someone joined the Nath sect, his old identity was lost. He simply became a “Nath”. Many Muslim Nath Yogis lived in eastern Uttar Pradesh. They wore saffron clothes and sang devotional songs as per Nath traditions.
Over time, many saints led the monastery. But in the 1940’s, the monastery began to change, and it began to lean towards a more Hindu identity.
In 1937, Digvijaynath became the Chief Mahant of Gorakhnath Math. He was a Rajput from Udaipur who lost his mother at an early age. Yogi Phoolnath had brought him to Gorakhpur. Digvijaynath initially supported the Congress Party and joined Gandhi’s movements against the British in the 1920s. However, he later became unhappy with Gandhi and the Congress.
In the 1940’s, Digvijaynath joined the Hindu Mahasabha, a group strongly opposed to Gandhi and the Congress. Savarkar was a prominent leader of this group. Digvijaynath’s influence grew, and he became the head of the Hindu Mahasabha for the United Provinces (now Uttar Pradesh).
Digvijaynath was accused of inciting violence to assassinate Gandhi in 1948. He spent nine months in prison but was later released due to lack of evidence.
It was Mahant Digvijaynath who made the Ram Temple issue a big political issue.
This incident made Babri Masjid a major center of communal tension in India. The Nehru government sealed the mosque to prevent further conflict. Digvijaynath’s stature increased in Hindu Mahasabha. He became its general secretary. He was deeply involved in the early stages of the Ram Mandir movement.
By 1967, Digvijaynath’s influence had become so strong that he contested and won the election for Member of Parliament as an independent candidate. Earlier, in 1962, his disciple Mahant Avaidyanath had already become a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA). This was the real beginning of Gorakhnath Math’s journey into politics.
After Digvijaynath’s death in 1969, Mahant Avaidyanath became the head of Gorakhnath Math. Avaidyanath was also a Rajput resident of Pauri Garhwal, which is also the district of Yogi Adityanath. Like Digvijaynath, he also lost his parents at a young age and was brought up by Digvijaynath, who made him his successor.
In 1970, Avaidyanath followed the path of his mentor, winning the by-election to parliament as an independent candidate.He also continued the politics of Ram temple started by Digvijaynath.
Main moments of Avaidyanath’s role:
Avaidyanath continued his political career and won elections in 1989 and 1991. He also won as a BJP candidate in 1991.When Babri Masjid was demolished on December 6, 1992, Mahant Avaidyanath was present there. The Liberhan Commission, which investigated the Babri Masjid case, included Avaidyanath among those who contributed to increasing communal tension. However, this did not reduce his popularity; Rather, it further increased his respect. He won re-election in 1996.
When Gorakhnath Math was becoming the center of Hindutva politics, at the same time another political division was taking place in Gorakhpur. This divided the politics of this area into Thakur and Brahmin groups.
In 1956, the Government of Uttar Pradesh started building Gorakhpur University. Mahant Digvijaynath donated two colleges built by him to the university. With this he became the Vice President of the Governing Body of the University. Collector of Gorakhpur, S.N.M. Tripathi (a Brahmin), became the President. Digvijaynath (a Thakur) and Tripathi wanted their own community to control the university. This led to a battle for power and jobs, with every faction supporting its own people.
Tripathi supported a student named Harishankar Tiwari (Brahmin). In response, the Thakur faction sided with people like Balwant Singh and Ravindra Singh. There were then two main centers of Gorakhpur politics: Harishankar Tiwari’s faction (showing Brahmin power) and Gorakhnath Math (controlled by Thakurs). Due to this, gang war started in Gorakhpur. Many powerful people and gangsters emerged from this fight.
By the 1980’s, Gorakhpur was divided between Harishankar Tiwari and Thakur Virendra Pratap Shahi. In 1997, however, a new Mafia leader, Mr. Prakash Shukla, appeared. He killed Virendra Pratap Shahi in front of everyone. This was a big blow for the Thakur faction. He needed a new strong leader.
At the same time, Mahant Avaidyanath made Yogi Adityanath his successor. Yogi Adityanath’s father, Anand Singh Bisht, was Avaidyanath’s cousin, to whom he was attached to the family.
In 1996, a feud escalated between the students and shopkeepers of the college of Gorakhnath Math. The police chased the students and reached their hostel. Yogi Adityanath came forward to support the students and himself went to the hostel. His presence aroused enthusiasm among the students and they joined him. The police had to retreat. From this incident, the students of Gorakhpur came to know that Yogi Adityanath is a leader whom they can support. Yogi Adityanath started filling the leadership gap that had arisen after the death of the Thakur leader.
In 1996, Mahant Avaidyanath made Yogi Adityanath in-charge of his campaign management. In 1998, considering his age, Mahant Avaidyanath took retirement from politics. He handed over his political legacy to Yogi Adityanath.
In the 1998 Lok Sabha elections, Yogi Adityanath contested replacing Mahant Avaidyanath. Yogi Adityanath won with an overwhelming majority. At just 26 years old, he became the youngest MP in the Lok Sabha.
However, his winning margin was much lower than his guru. Avaidyanath had won in 1996 by around 56,800 votes, while Yogi Adityanath won by just 26,000 votes. Samajwadi Party candidate, Jamuna Prasad Nishad gave him a tough fight. Samajwadi Party was becoming a strong challenger for BJP in Gorakhpur. He was getting support from Muslim and many OBC communities.
To maintain his hold in the Gorakhpur area, Yogi Adityanath further intensified his Hindu-centric politics. If any minor incident had happened in Gorakhpur, he would have immediately gathered his supporters, and the local government often had to obey him.
In 1999, some Muslims in Panchrukhia cut down an old Peepal tree to increase the cemetery. He argued that it was part of his cemetery land. When Yogi Adityanath heard this, he announced that he would go to Panchrukhia and replant trees there. As soon as he arrived and started his work, the police intervened.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party leader Talat Aziz had called a meeting in the village. Tension increased due to the presence of both Yogi and Talat Aziz. When Yogi Adityanath’s group was leaving the village, a mob of Talat Aziz’s supporters threw stones at the last car of Yogi’s convoy. When Yogi came to know about this, he returned. The situation worsened rapidly, leading to sloganeering and then firing. Talat Aziz’s security guard and head constable Satyaprakash Yadav were killed in this firing.
Talat Aziz and his supporters fled into the fields. Yogi Adityanath and his group also left the spot. The police report accused Yogi Adityanath of attempt to murder, rioting, insulting a place of worship and entering a Muslim cemetery.
At that time, there was a BJP government in Uttar Pradesh and Kalyan Singh was the Chief Minister. Powerful regional leaders, Harishankar Tiwari and Shiv Pratap Shukla, were ministers in Lucknow. He tried hard to get Yogi Adityanath arrested in the Panchrukhia case. But due to the intervention of Mahant Avaidyanath, nothing happened to Yogi. Vajpayee-led central government and Home Minister L.K. Advani also helped resolve the matter.
In the 1999 Lok Sabha elections, Jamuna Prasad Nishad again challenged Yogi Adityanath. Yogi won by a very small margin, by just 7,339 votes.
In the 2002 state elections, BJP lost in Uttar Pradesh. Samajwadi Party became the largest party, although Mayawati and BJP formed a coalition government. These events made Yogi realize that he needed his own organization.
Therefore, in 2002, Yogi Adityanath founded Hindu Yuva Vahini (HYV). It was a separate group from BJP and RSS. Through HYV, Yogi expanded his influence in Gorakhpur and nearby districts such as Basti, Deoria, Azamgarh, Kushinagar and Ghazipur. Many people called it “Thakur Yuva Vahini” because most of its members were Thakurs.
However, Yogi received support beyond his caste. They also benefited from the castes associated with the Gorakhnath Math, which included many backward and Dalit communities like the Nishads. Yogi also held public meetings, or “Janata Darbar”, daily, where he connected directly with the people. They created an image that they would help anyone, even the poor and vulnerable, regardless of their background. Muslims also brought their problems to his court and received help.
HYV’s Hindu-centric politics also brought political benefits to Yogi Adityanath. In the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, when the BJP was defeated at the national level, Yogi Adityanath still maintained his victory in the Gorakhpur seat. His margin of victory increased significantly to 1.42 lakh votes.
The rise of Yogi and Hindu Yuva Vahini led to more communal incidents in Gorakhpur and surrounding areas. According to a report in Tehelka Magazine, between 2004 and 2007, between 30 and 40 communal incidents took place in the locality.
A similar incident occurred in Mau District in October 2005. During Ramadan and Dussehra, some Muslims complained that loud Hindu hymns were disturbing their prayers. A meeting took place, and a Hindu event was postponed to reduce tension. However, the next day, members of Hindu Yuva Vahini protested against the decision. There were clashes with Muslims, and some HYV members opened fire. Eight people were killed, and 37 were wounded. Investigation revealed that Hindu Yuva Vahini and Yogi Adityanath had instigated the violence. However, BJP accused Samajwadi Party MLA Mukhtar Ansari of this.
In January 2007, communal clashes also took place in Gorakhpur during the Muharram procession. A Hindu boy, Prince Agrahari, was injured. He later died in the hospital, which further increased the tension.
On 27 January 2007, Yogi Adityanath gave an inflammatory speech near Gorakhpur railway station. He said that he will not complain to the police in exchange for the blood of every Hindu. Instead, they will ensure that at least ten people are killed. Before his speech was over, a mob attacked a Muslim’s hotel. Due to this, riots broke out in Gorakhpur and surrounding areas. Two people were killed, and hundreds of homes and shops were burned, causing millions in damage.
The next day, despite strict orders from the District Magistrate (DM), Yogi Adityanath and his supporters tried to march in sensitive areas. The police arrested him. As the police van was carrying Yogi, people lay down on the streets, slowing down the police car. It took eight hours to cover just 2 kilometres.
The Samajwadi Party government led by Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav also removed the security of Yogi Adityanath. Due to not handling the situation properly, DM and SP were transferred. Jagmohan Singh Yadav was sent as the new Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Gorakhpur. He immediately started reducing the influence of Yogi Adityanath. DIG Yadav sent police to the villages to arrest the members of Hindu Yuva Vahini and register a case against them. This weakened the organization. Yogi Adityanath spent 11 days in Gorakhpur jail and was released on bail on 7 February.
On 12 March 2007, Yogi Adityanath stood up to speak in the Lok Sabha about his arrest and removal of his security. He cried, and found it difficult to speak. He told the Lok Sabha Speaker that his life was in danger and he feared that he would be killed. He talked about sacrificing his family and life for the society, but now he is being treated like a criminal.
Often, with the involvement of Yogi Adityanath and Hindu Yuva Vahini, even minor, local issues became major events. Due to this, Yogi Adityanath got the support of Hindus of all castes.
RSS is believed not to have liked Yogi’s Hindu Yuva Vahini as RSS considered itself the lone representative of Hindus. He did not want other organizations to grow over which he did not have control. This reveals a tumultuous relationship between Yogi and BJP. Sometimes Yogi distanced himself from BJP, and sometimes BJP distanced himself from his works.
In the 2007 state elections, Yogi Adityanath demanded 35 seats for his candidates in eastern Uttar Pradesh. The BJP refused, and Yogi rebelled. He fielded candidates from Hindu Yuva Vahini on All India Hindu Mahasabha Party ticket.
However, in the end both Yogi and BJP needed each other. Therefore, Yogi Adityanath contested Lok Sabha elections from Gorakhpur in 2009 on BJP ticket. He was challenged by Samajwadi Party’s Bhojpuri superstar Manoj Tiwari. Yogi Adityanath won, and his margin of victory increased to 2.20 lakh votes.
In 2011, BJP inducted four Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leaders into the party who were fired on corruption charges. One of them was Babu Singh Kushwaha, who also got a ticket for the 2012 state elections. Yogi Adityanath was very unhappy with this. He said that some people in the party are showing sympathy towards corrupt people, which is not acceptable. He threatened that if this decision was not withdrawn, he would leave the party and campaign against these candidates. BJP was defending its decision, but Yogi Adityanath openly stood against his own party. In the end, Yogi won, and BJP withdrew Babu Singh Kushwaha’s ticket.
Relations between Yogi Adityanath and BJP improved after BJP’s major defeat in the 2012 state elections. Yogi Adityanath started attending BJP events, and the party started promoting him. Narendra Modi was progressing at the national level, and BJP’s popularity was increasing across the country.
BJP wanted to use Yogi’s image as a strong Hindu nationalist leader. Yogi became one of the few leaders, like Rajnath Singh and Narendra Modi, who campaigned for other candidates. In the 2014 general elections, Yogi Adityanath won his seat by over 3 lakh votes. As Hindu-centric politics strengthened in 2013 and 2014, Yogi’s national profile also grew.
In late 2014, BJP made Yogi Adityanath the Chief Campaigner for 11 state assembly and one parliamentary by-election in Uttar Pradesh. This was considered a move by Modi and Shah to promote one Thakur leader so that another prominent Thakur leader Rajnath Singh could be weakened. This also revealed to the voters that BJP will continue its Hindu-centric politics even after coming to power. During these campaigns, Yogi made strong statements against Muslims.
In September 2014, Yogi Adityanath’s mentor, Mahant Avaidyanath passed away. After this Yogi Adityanath became the Chief Mahant of Gorakhnath Math. His anti-Muslim statements continued and increased even more. In February 2015, at a meeting of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, he said that he would install idols of Gauri and Ganesha in every mosque if he had the chance. In July 2016, he accused Mother Teresa of conspiring to Christianize India and creating a dangerous situation for the country. Yogi Adityanath became even more popular with these statements.
The 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections were approaching. Hindu Yuva Vahini launched a vigorous campaign and demanded BJP to declare Yogi Adityanath as its chief ministerial candidate. However, BJP did not announce any CM candidate and instead sought votes in the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
When the results came, BJP got a clear majority, and Samajwadi Party was out of power. There was a strong demand among BJP supporters to make Yogi the Chief Minister. Initially, Manoj Sinha was the frontrunner for the post of CM. His name was being told everywhere, and it was also being said that he was going to Lucknow for the swearing-in. He visited Kashi Vishwanath Temple, which was seen as taking blessings before taking oath.
However, UP BJP President Keshav Prasad Maurya, who himself was dreaming of becoming CM, expressed his displeasure with Amit Shah. He warned of possible trouble in the meeting of elected MLAs. Maurya then joined hands with Yogi Adityanath, who was angry at not being considered for the top post. Yogi Adityanath contacted RSS, which supported his claim.
Under this pressure, Amit Shah changed his mind. He felt that Yogi Adityanath would be the right choice for the Chief Minister. He was confident that Yogi would keep the Hindutva agenda alive until the 2019 general elections. On the evening of 17 March, Amit Shah secretly called Yogi Adityanath and asked him to come to Delhi. Yogi Adityanath reached Delhi the next morning. There he was told that he would go to Lucknow and become the Chief Minister. In this way Yogi Adityanath became the Chief Minister of India’s largest state Uttar Pradesh.
Yogi Adityanath’s journey is a powerful example of how religious and political paths can be found in India. From a youth of Uttarakhand to the post of head and then chief minister of a powerful religious institution, his story is full of strong beliefs and firm political decisions. He has inherited a legacy of mixing faith in public life and has carried it through in his own way. His tenure has consistently paid attention to issues that often generate debate and tension between disparate communities.
Yogi Adityanath’s story shows the complex interaction of religion, caste and power in Indian politics. His rise reflects the power of strong leadership and the ability to garner support for specific causes. He remains a central and often controversial figure, deeply influencing the political landscape of Uttar Pradesh and beyond.
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