LUCKNOW, Sept. 25 -- Former Gujarat-cadre IAS officer Arvind Kumar Sharma, the Uttar Pradesh minister for energy and urban development, has said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not only his political guru but also a guardian. "Even today, as a minister (in the Yogi Adityanath cabinet), I turn to him whenever I feel the need for guidance," Sharma, who rarely gives interviews, said in a candid and detailed conversation with Hindustan Times. Sharma, who hails from a farmers' family in Mau district, shared insights into his journey into politics, outlined the vision for his departments and addressed the contentious issue of privatising power distribution. Describing his transition from the bureaucracy to politics as smooth and natural, he said his assignments in the (Gujarat) chief minister's office (CMO) and prime minister's office (PMO) served as platforms of semi-political training. P7...