Divya Maderna is an Indian politician and a member of the Indian National Congress (INC). In the 2018 assembly elections, she was elected as a member of the legislative assembly (MLA) from the Osian constituency in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, after she defeated BJP’s candidate, Bhera Ram Choudhary, by a margin of 27590 votes.
Wiki/Biography
Divya Mahipal Maderna was born on Thursday, 25 October 1984 (age 38 years; as of 2022) in Jaipur, India. Her zodiac sign is Scorpio. In 2004, she enrolled herself to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics at the University of Pune, Pune. Divya pursued her post-graduation degree in economics at the University of Nottingham in England.
Childhood picture of Divya Maderna with her sister Rubal Maderna (infant)
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 6″
Weight (approx.): 60 kg
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family & Caste
Divya Maderna belongs to a Jat family.
Parents & Siblings
Divya’s father’s name is Mahipal Maderna. He was a member of the Indian National Congress, and he served as the water resource minister of Rajasthan. He died on 17 October 2021 at his residence in Jodhpur after battling cancer.
Divya Maderna with her father, Mahipal Maderna
Her mother’s name is Leela Maderna, a member of the Indian National Congress, who successfully contested the panchayat elections from Jodhpur to become Zila Pramukh (Block President) in September 2021. .
Divya Maderna (left) with her mother, Leela Maderna
Divya has a sister, Rubal Maderna.
Divya Maderna (left) with her sister Rubal Maderna
Husband
Divya Maderna is unmarried.
Other Relatives
Divya’s grandfather, Parasram Maderna, was a senior Jat leader from Rajasthan, India. He was a member of the Indian National Congress, and he served as an MLA from Rajasthan nine times (1957- 2003). He also served as speaker of the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly (6 January 1999 to 15 January 2004). He passed away on 16 February 2014.
Divya Maderna (standing on the left side) with her parents, sister, and grandfather, Parasram Maderna (sitting in middle)
Divya’s paternal uncle’s name is Ashok Maderna, and she has two paternal aunts, Ratan Mirdha and Renu.
Religion
Divya Maderna follows Hinduism.
Divya Maderna worshipping the Shivlinga, an aniconic representation of the Hindu god Shiva
Career
At the age of 26, Divya became a member of the Indian National Congress (INC). In 2010, she successfully contested the Zila Panchayat elections from Osian in the Jodhpur district of Rajasthan. In December 2018, Divya contested the Rajasthan legislative assembly elections from the Osian constituency, and she defeated BJP’s candidate, Bhera Ram Choudhary, by a margin of 27590 votes. On 19 September 2022, Divya was elected as the President of Gram Seva Sahakari Samiti Limited of Chadi village in Jodhpur.
Divya Maderna (right), after being elected as the President of Gram Seva Sahakari Samiti Limited of Chadi village in Jodhpur
Divya contested the 2023 Rajasthan Legislative Assembly elections from the Osian constituency. She, however, lost the election to a BJP candidate named Bhairaram Chaudhary.
Controversies
Accused of cheating and dishonesty
On 17 June 2017, an FIR was filed against Divya Maderna at Khinvsar Police Station, district Nagaur in Rajasthan on account of cheating, dishonestly in the delivery of property, and forgery of valuable security. She was booked under sections 420, 467, 471, and 120B of the Indian Penal Court (IPC).
Accused of humiliating the head of a village
In 2019, a video went viral in which Divya Maderna was seen asking the head of the village (sarpanch) to sit on the floor with local people rather than on the chair beside her at a meeting. On 16 March 2019, Divya had gone to Khetasar village in Osian near Jodhpur district to express her gratitude to the local people who voted for her in the 2018 assembly elections. Chandu Devi, the sarpanch of the village, initially sat on the floor, but then people asked her to sit next to Divya on the chair. As soon she went to sit next to the MLA, Divya asked her to sit with the local people and gestured toward the audience sitting on the floor after which Chandu sat on the ground with the local people. The residents of the village heavily criticised her for humiliating their sarpanch, and they demanded an apology from her. In an interview, Chandu Devi, the sarpanch of the village, talked about how she felt after she was stopped by the MLA to sit beside her and said,
I am very disappointed with the behaviour meted out to me by Maderna, I had gone to the meeting of Maderna on the insistence of the villagers and also sat on the dais after the villagers wanted me to sit beside the MLA
On the other hand, Maderna claimed that she was not aware of the fact that Chandu Devi was the head of the village as her face was covered with a veil. In an interview, Divya talked about how she failed to recognize the head of the village and said,
I could not recognise her. I considered her a simple villager and thought that she had come to me on the dais with some grievance.”
ओसियां विधायक #divyamaderna एक बार फिर चर्चा में, महिला सरपंच को कुर्सी से उठा कर जमीन पर बैठाने का वीडियो हुआ वायरल pic.twitter.com/qDMUjO8oau
— Rajasthan Patrika (@rpbreakingnews) March 17, 2019
Addressing Congress’ minister as ‘Rubber Stamp’
In March 2022, Divya Maderna attracted controversy when she criticized and addressed her own government’s water resource minister, Mahesh Joshi, as a ‘rubber stamp’ for not responding to the problems faced by the residents in the desert area of Rajasthan regarding tap water connections and the implementation of water resources. During an assembly meeting in Rajasthan, Divya said,
I am warning you (Joshi) that I have joined politics to serve people and if you continue to bulldoze the water schemes, I will organize a people’s campaign against you. The minister and principal secretary of the desert do visit my areas, but I don’t know whether mantriji (Joshi) understand the problem of desert area,”
Sat on dharna against her own government
On 11 September 2022, Congress MLA Divya Maderna staged a dharna against her own government for not treating the patient for free under the Chiranjeevi Health Insurance Scheme, which is a government scheme that provides cashless medical insurance to the permanent residents of Rajasthan up to Rs 5 lakh. The scheme was made available to all the families of Rajasthan from 1 May 2021. On 7 September 2022, Jagdish Dudi, a resident of Dhanariwala village, was admitted to Shri Ram Hospital in Jodhpur, and despite having a Chiranjeevi card, he was asked to deposit approximately Rs 3.5 lakh after the treatment. When Divya got to know that the hospital refused to treat the patient for free, she reached there and spoke to the doctors and the administrative staff of the hospital, but there was no response following which she sat on a dharna with other supporters.
यह घटनाक्रम हॉस्पिटल की तानाशाही के कारण तो है ही लेकिन उससे कहीं ज्यादा जोधपुर कलेक्टर की विफलता के कारण यह तक पहुँचा है ।@ashokgehlot51 @RajCMO https://t.co/nUECKnW82i
— Divya Mahipal Maderna (@DivyaMaderna) September 10, 2022
Targetted NSUI President in Rajasthan
In September 2022, Congress’ student organization, NSUI’s candidate, Abhishek Choudhary, was defeated in the student union election of 17 universities in Rajasthan.
@NSUIRajasthan के प्रदेश अध्यक्ष होने के नाते मैं इन चुनावों के परिणामों की पूर्ण जिम्मेदारी लेता हूं। हम फिर खड़े होंगे, फिर लड़ेंगे।लेकिन एक बात केवल यह कहना चाहूंगा कि भीतरघात का कोई समाधान नहीं हैं, विभिषण व जयचंदो का कोई समाधान नहीं हैं। पृथ्वीराज फिर तराइन लड़े और फिर
— Abhishek Choudhary (@withabhinsui) September 1, 2022
Divya took to Twitter, and she blamed Abhishek for the defeat.
माशाअल्लाह ! बा-कमाल बोल है -शून्य पर रन आउट होने को शानदार प्रदर्शन कहने वाले यह पहले व अंतिम व्यक्ति होंगे ।
वैसे राजस्थान विश्वविद्यालय में सन् 2014 में #NSUI के विभिषण एवं जयचंद कौन था ? @Neerajkundan @AnilChopra_ @arvindchotia @pantlp @nsui https://t.co/SlSX1Q9AYD
— Divya Mahipal Maderna (@DivyaMaderna) September 2, 2022
Remarks on Ashok Gehlot’s failure to become congress president
In September 2022, Ashok Gehlot, who was appointed as the chief minister of Rajasthan in 2018, refused to contest the Congress presidential elections. Reportedly, Divya Maderna, on Ashok Gehlot’s decision of opting out of the AICC president’s race, passed the remark ‘Mutthi Bhar Bajare Ke Lie Dilli Ki Badashahat Kho Di.’ (Lost the kingship of Delhi for a handful of millet)
दिल्ली के सुल्तान शेरशाह सूरी (17 मई 1540 – 15 मई 1545) का कथन है । शेरशाह ने बाबर के उत्तराधिकारी हुमायूं को हराकर दिल्ली पर अधिकार किया एवं लगभग 5 वर्ष तक शासन किया। https://t.co/tDmqM2wenu
— Divya Mahipal Maderna (@DivyaMaderna) September 29, 2022
Divya targetted three party members Shanti Kumar Dhariwal, Mahesh Joshi, and Dharmendra Rathod, and she blamed that due to differences between them, the city and the whole of Rajasthan were deprived of the moment when a resident of Jodhpur would take the highest post of Congress party.
क्योंकि सिर्फ तीन व्यक्तियों की भारी गलती की वजह से आज जोधपुर व समस्त राजस्थान गर्व होने वाले उस पल से महरूम रह गया ।जोधपुर से निकल कर एक व्यक्ति कांग्रेस पार्टी के सबसे सिरमोर पद पर आसीन होते तो हमारे लिए गर्व की बात होती । https://t.co/0Pjfb7YLlw
— Divya Mahipal Maderna (@DivyaMaderna) September 30, 2022
Divya reminded Ashok of the incident in 1998 when her grandfather, Parasram Maderna, was the key contender for the post of chief minister of Rajasthan, but the high command made Ashok Gehlot the chief minister, and her grandfather accepted the decision with respect.
Awards
- 2019: Women Political Leadership Award by Focus India in New Delhi
Divya Maderna with her Women Political Leadership Award by Focus India in New Delhi
- 2021: Adarsh Yuva Vidhayak Samman at the 12th Indian Student Parliament
Divya Maderna posing with her Adarsh Yuva Vidhayak Samman Award at the 12th Indian Student Parliament 2021
Assets & Properties
Movable assets
- LIC or other insurance Policies: Rs 6,71,206
- Personal loans/advance given: Rs 18,78,995
Immovable Assets
- Agricultural Land: Rs 25,00,000
- Non-Agricultural Land: Rs 30,00,000
- Residential Buildings: Rs 1,66,49,339
Note: The given estimates of moveable and immovable assets are according to the year 2018.
Net Worth
In 2018, Divya’s net worth was estimated to be Rs 34,466,417.
Facts/Trivia
- On 6 October 2019, Divya attended the India Economic Summit as the only MLA from India in New Delhi.
Divya Maderna’s Instagram post about her presence at the India Economic Summit
- On 12 November 2019, Divya participated as a speaker in the inaugural edition of Dhaka Global Dialogue, which was organized by “The Observer Research Foundation.”
Divya Maderna at the inaugural edition of Dhaka Global Dialogue
- On 15 January 2020, Divya participated as a speaker at US India Business Council at Hotel Leela Palace in New Delhi.
Divya Maderna (extreme right) at US India Business Council in New Delhi
- On 4 February 2020, Divya was invited to address the topic of “Beat Plastic Pollution” at the Ocean Conference held in New York, the United Nation’s headquarters.
Divya Maderna at the Ocean Conference held in New York
- Divya Maderna’s father, Mahipal Maderna, took his last breath on 17 October 2021 after battling cancer for a long time. Divya and her sister Rubal performed the last rites of their father, which are apparently performed by a son. According to Hindu customs, on the death of a family member, usually male members perform the final rituals. From tying a pagri (turban) for the rasam pagri ceremony (turban ceremony) to lighting the funeral pyre of their father, Divya and Rubal broke the old conventions of the society of performing last rites only by males.
Divya Maderna (left), along with her sister, Rubal Maderna, at her father’s turban ceremony (Rasam Pagri)
- In June 2022, during a meeting in Osian, Hanuman Beniwal, a member of parliament from Nagaur, made controversial remarks about Divya’s father, Mahipal Naderna, and her grandfather Parasram Maderna and advised Divya to get married as her age was passing. During the meeting, Hanuman said,
Once by becoming an MLA, she started considering herself as a leader. Leave my worries, I live by eliminating what I follow. Divya should leave the worry of development and get married, because marriage keeps the mind right. Mahipal Maderna is no more, so we all should worry about it. I will also come to bless you for marriage.”
Divya’s supporters criticized the controversial statement, and they protested against him by burning his effigy and raising slogans against him. On being asked about the protests made against him by Divya Maderna’s supporters, Hanuman, in his defence, replied,
I have not said any wrong thing. Age is passing. So you should get married.”
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education