‘I’ll do politics, but not with any party’: Ex-IAS Divya Mittal announces UP political entry

In a video message posted on X on Tuesday, Mittal said she wanted to work directly with people and become the voice of citizens whose concerns, she said, often fail to reach government offices or go unheard when they do.

“I will do politics, but not with any political party. I will do politics with people,” she said.

‘What next? Politics’

Addressing the speculation surrounding her next move after leaving the IAS, Mittal said she had taken a few days to gather the courage to announce her decision.

“What next? With whom and from where?” she said, before answering: “The first question is what next? Politics.”

Mittal said her aim was to represent people whose voices were not being heard and to seek greater accountability in governance.

“I want to become a voice, the voice of those people whose voice does not reach any office and, even if it reaches, is not heard,” she said.

UP to be starting point of political journey

Mittal described Uttar Pradesh as her “karmabhoomi” and said the state would be the starting point of her political journey.

Her announcement comes ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly election, although she has not announced a specific constituency or said whether she will contest an election.

She also appealed to people from different sections of society — including teachers, farmers, students, doctors, labourers and lawyers — to join her initiative, saying meaningful political change would require public participation.

School construction delays cited as example

Mittal drew on an experience from her time in Mirzapur to explain why accountability would be central to her political agenda.

She recalled meeting a woman in Lahuria Dah who had sought a school offering education beyond Class 5 for children in the village.

Mittal said she examined the rules and approved the school, but construction had still not begun three years later.

“There was just no will. If there had been will, even the mountain would have given way, but if there had been no will, a single file became a mountain,” she said.

She argued that such delays demonstrated the need for greater accountability in the functioning of government departments.

Roads, jobs and paper leaks among key concerns

Mittal also raised issues concerning poor roads and bridges in villages, difficulties faced by families during the monsoon, examination paper leaks and lengthy recruitment processes.

She spoke about the impact of artificial intelligence on employment and the future facing young people, saying these were issues that required greater political attention.

“Today, there is everything in our politics, there is power, there is noise, but there is no thinking,” she said.

From IAS to independent politics

A 2013-batch officer, Mittal resigned from the IAS on August 30 after around 13 years in service. Her resignation was accepted in September and took effect on September 15.

She had served as District Magistrate in districts including Mirzapur and Deoria and was particularly known for initiatives involving piped water supply to remote villages in Mirzapur.

Before joining the IAS, Mittal studied at IIT Delhi and IIM Bangalore and worked in London. She later returned to India and cleared the UPSC Civil Services Examination in her second attempt.

Her latest announcement marks a shift from administrative service to an explicitly political role, but she has so far indicated that her platform will be built independently of established political parties.