Sumitra Mahajan is a well-known Indian politician who served as the Speaker of the Lower House of the Indian Parliament from 2014 to 2019. She is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and represents the Indore constituency in Madhya Pradesh. Notably, she held this position from 1989 to 2019, making her the longest-serving female congresswoman.
Wiki/Biography
Sumitra Mahajan, known before marriage as Sumitra Sathe, was born on Monday 12 April 1943 in Chiplun, Bombay District, British India (now India Maharashtra) (age 80; as of 2023). Her zodiac sign is Aries. She received her MA and LLB degrees from the University of Indore (currently known as Devi Ahirya Vishwavidyalaya).
appearance
Height (approximately): 5′4″
Hair color: black
Eye color: hazel green
family and caste
Sumitra Mahajan belonged to the Marathi Chitpavan Brahmin family.
Parents and siblings
Sumitra Mahajan’s father’s name was Purushotam Neelkanth Sathe and his mother’s name was Usha Sathe. Not much information is available about her siblings.
husband and children
Sumitra Sathe married Jayant Mahajan, a well-known lawyer of Indore, on January 29, 1965. Her husband passed away on April 13, 2018. Sumitra is the mother of two sons, Milind and Mandar. Her elder son Milind Mahajan is involved in IT and business activities, while her younger son Mandar Mahajan is a commercial pilot.
Sumitra Mahajan and her husband
address
68 Manish Puri, Chandralok Colony, Indore, Madhya Pradesh.
Signature/Autograph
Sumitra Mahajan’s signature
Profession
politics
In 1982, Sumitra became a legal person of the Indore Municipal Corporation and began her political career. Thereafter, in 1984, she served as deputy mayor in the corporation. In 1989, she won the first Lok Sabha election. Notably, she won this victory over Congress leader and former Odisha chief minister Prakash Chandra Sethi. In 1990, she was elected to the Mahila Morcha Advisory Committee, Chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Health and Family Welfare Department. In 1991, she was re-elected as a member of the 10th Lok Sabha (second term).
Sumitra Mahajan addressed the members of Sumangla-2018 organized by Bharat Vikas Parishad at Bhargava Auditorium, Chandigarh.
In the same year, she was appointed to the Joint Committee on the 73rd Constitutional Amendment, the Joint Committee on Prenatal Diagnostic Technologies (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Bill 1991, and the Department of Transport Advisory Committee. Sumitra was appointed as the Madhya Pradesh Vice-President of the Bharatiya Janata Party from 1992 to 1994 and as Secretary of the BJP Parliamentary Committee and Chairman of the Madhya Pradesh Parliamentary Committee from 1995 to 1996. She was re-elected as a member of the 11th Lok Sabha (3rd term) since 1996. From 1996, she was appointed secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party and in 1997, she was appointed as a member of the Public Accounts Committee. In 1998, she was re-elected to the 12th Lok Sabha (4th term) and was subsequently appointed as the secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Secretary-General, Bharatiya Janata Party, Convenor, Sub-Committee on Drugs Control, Committee on Human Resource Development and Member, Joint Committee on Human Resource Development and Sub-committee-I on Values-Based Education, Joint Committee on Empowerment of Women and Sub-committee on Assessment of Laws Relevant to Women – Criminal Law , Members of Parliament Local Development Planning Committee (MPLAD) and the Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Human Resource Development.
Sumitra Mahajan and former Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
In 1999, she was re-elected as a member of the 13th Lok Sabha (5th term). Sumitra served as Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Human Resource Development from October 1999 to June 2002 and as Union Minister of State in the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology from July 2002 to May 2003, and From May 24, 2003 to May 2004, he served as Federal Minister of State in the Ministry of Petroleum. and natural gas. In 2004, she was re-elected as a member of the 14th People’s House of Representatives (6th term). From 2004 to 2009, she served as a member of the General Purpose Committee and Bureau, and as Chair of the Social Justice and Empowerment Committee. In 2005, she served as a member of the Prabhari of Mahila Morcha and Civil Aviation Advisory Committee of the Bharatiya Janata Party. From August 5, 2007 to May 2009, she served as Chair of the Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment. In 2009, she was re-elected as a member of the 15th Lok Sabha (seventh term). In June 2009, she was reappointed as a member of the Presidium. On August 31, 2009, Sumitra was appointed Chairman of the Standing Committee on Rural Development and on September 23, 2009, as a member of the Women Empowerment Commission.
Sumitra Mahajan serves as spokesperson during the meeting at Parliament House
On June 6, 2014, Sumitra Mahajan was appointed Speaker of the 16th Lok Sabha; she was unanimously elected as Speaker by the members of the Lok Sabha. Prior to this, she was a member of the “Presidential Group” of the Lok Sabha. In August 2015, she demonstrated her leadership skills by suspending 25 members of Congress for five days for violating House discipline. Sumitra also played a key role as patron of NLC Bharat, overseeing the proceedings.
dispute
Former Speaker Sumitra Mahajan and son Milind Mahajan accused of involvement in bank fraud
Anil Kumar Dhadwaiwale, former chairman of Indore-based Maharashtra Brahmin Cooperative Bank, accused Sumitra Mahajan and his Son Milind Mahajan played a major role in the fraud that took place at the bank between 1997 and 2003. Milind Mahajan, who holds a ministerial position in the central government, serves as one of the directors of the bank. In 2005, a first information report (FIR) was lodged at Indore Central Kotwali police station against 16 people, including Milind Mahajan, in connection with the scam. However, the FIR was later dismissed after investigation. Notably, several directors, including the husband of Sumitra Mahajan’s personal secretary, were also allegedly given loans but failed to repay them.
Awards and Honors
- From September to October 2016, when the Indian parliamentary delegation visited South Korea (Seoul), the Korea University of Foreign Affairs in Seoul awarded Sumitra Mahajan an honorary doctorate.
- Sumitra Mahajan received the Padma Bhushan, India’s third highest civilian award, from President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhawan in 2021 , in recognition of her outstanding contributions to politics and public welfare
Sumitra Mahajan receives the Padma Bhushan from President Raj Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan in 2021
income
According to the affidavit filed for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Sumitra Mahajan’s total income shown in the ITR for the financial year 2012-2013 was Rs 6,67,075.
Assets and property
movable property
- Total value of movable assets (including cash and jewelery) as per affidavit – Rs. 25,32,234.
real estate
- Agricultural land – Rs 2,00,000
- Commercial Building – Rs 80,00,000
- Residential Building – Rs 80,00,000
Note: Estimates of movable and immovable assets are calculated based on 2014 data.
net worth
As per the affidavit filed for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Sumitra’s net worth is estimated at Rs. 10 million.
Facts/Trivia
- Throughout his life, Sumitra Mahajan looked to 18th-century Queen Ahiryabai Holkar as a source of inspiration. She staged a play on Devi Ahiya Bai Holkar and wrote a book titled Matoshree, which delves into the life journey of Ahiryabai Holkar. The book was officially launched in 2017 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Sumitra Mahajan attends her book launch with Prime Minister Narendra Modi
- Sumitra Mahajan became the second woman after Meira Kumar to be elected as Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
- In February 2015, Sumitra Mahajan found a place in the LIMCA book of records as the first Indian woman to represent the same Lok Sabha constituency for eight consecutive terms under the same party banner.
- She also serves as the Director of the Madhya Pradesh Maratha Academy and serves as the Chairperson of the Indore Ahiliya Utsav Committee and the Center for Contemporary Studies, Indore.
- She played a key role in conceptualizing and leading the first National Conference of Women Legislators and the inaugural National Conference of Women Legislators held in New Delhi in March 2018.
- While serving as Chairman of the BRICS Parliamentary Forum in 2016, Sumitra Mahajan organized the convening of the BRICS Women Parliamentarians Forum in Jaipur, and organized the meeting of the speakers and moderators of the BRICS Parliamentary Forum countries in Geneva, Switzerland. reunion.
- In 2021, Sumitra was admitted to Mumbai Hospital in Indore. The incident led to the spread of unfounded rumors and disinformation about her death on the Internet. Many news outlets prematurely reported her death without verifying its accuracy. Even politician Shashi Tharoor tweeted his condolences but later withdrew them. However, Sumitra’s family clarified the situation and confirmed that she is in good health, effectively ending the baseless speculations.
- In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, Sumitra Mahajan won by a slim margin of 11,480 votes, the slimmest margin in her entire political career. Recognizing her declining popularity, she showed keen political acumen by reconciling with Kailash Vijayvargiya, a prominent MP minister who is well known in Malwa region. This strategic decision proved to be fruitful as she achieved an impressive victory in the 16th Lok Sabha elections, defeating her Congress rival Satyanarayan Pat by a staggering margin of 4,66,901 votes. you. The achievement marked Madhya Pradesh’s highest vote-getter victory in these elections.
- One of Sumitra Mahajan’s interests is reading and participating in music, theater and movies and she is also passionate about singing.
- Her constituents affectionately call her “Tai.”
- Sumitra is passionate about Indian sports and works on conservation/development of playgrounds and organizes women’s kho-kho competitions in Indore.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education