Yogi Adityanath, the controversial mascot of hardline Hindutva, will be the next chief minister of Uttar Pradesh.

In a move that surprised many, the 44-year-old five-term Member of Parliament from Gorakhpur was elected the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislature party leader at a meeting of the newly elected MLAs, a week after the BJP won a resounding three-fourth majority in UP, making a comeback to power after 15 years.

Adityanath will be the 21st chief minister of UP and the fourth from the saffron party. He will be sworn in on Sunday. State BJP chief Keshav Prasad Maurya, who was himself in contention for the top job, announced Adityanath’s election. Maurya will be the deputy chief minister. (PTI)