Vasundhara Raje Scindia is an Indian politician and one of the top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). She served as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan and also served as a member of Lok Sabha for many times. She is the first woman to serve as chief minister of Rajasthan. She is one of the most powerful female politicians in India due to the various positions she held in the federal cabinet and within the party. As she has held various positions in the Central Government and the Government of Rajasthan. Apart from being a political giant, she also hails from the royal Maratha Scindia family. Let us know more about Vasundhara Raje.
Biography/Wiki
Vasundhara Raje was born on 8 March 1953 in Mumbai, Bombay State (now Mumbai, Maharashtra), India (68 years old as of 2021). She was the daughter of the late Jivaji Rao Scindia (Maharaja of Gwalior). She completed her primary education at Oratory Convent in Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu. For higher education, she studied at Sophia College, University of Mumbai, where she graduated in Economics and Political Science.
family
Raje was born to Jivajirao Scindia and Vijaya Raje Scindia. Her father was the Maharaja of Gwalior and her mother was Rajmata of Gwalior.
Portrait of Jiwajirao Scindia, father of Vasundhara Raje
Vijaya Raje Scindia, mother of Vasundhara Raje
Vasundhara Raj’s parents
The late Madhavrao Scindia was her brother and a former leader of the Indian National Congress.
Madhavrao Scindia, brother of Vasundhara Raje
Late Padma Raje, Usha Raje, late Padmavati Raje, Yashodhara Raje were her sisters.
Vasundhara Raje and her sister Yashodhara Raje
Vasundhara Raje and her sisters
Congress politician Jyotiraditya Scindia is her nephew.
Vasundhara Raje and Jyotiraditya Scindia
On November 17, 1972, Raj married Maharaja Rana Hemant Singh of the Jat royal family of Jodhpur.
Hemant Singh of Dhopur, husband of Vasundhara Raje
In September 1973, their child Dushyant Singh was born. A year later in 1974, she separated from her husband.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6oH7cOwQGI
Her son is also a politician and has served as a member of parliament.
Vasundhara Raje and her son
caste
Vasundhara Raje belongs to the royal Maratha Kunbi clan. The Kunbi are considered non-elite traditional farmers of western India. Kunbis belong to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) in Maharashtra.
Profession
Raje joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and became the party’s national executive member in 1984. In 1985, she was elected to the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly from Dholpur constituency. From 1985 to 1987, she served as the vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 1987, she became the vice-president of the Rajasthan unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party. In the 1989 general election, Raj defeated Shiv Narain of the Indian National Congress and became a member of Parliament for the first time. He was elected as a member of the People’s House of Representatives for four consecutive terms from 1991 to 1999. In 1998, she was appointed Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs. In October 1999, Raj became the Union Minister of State (with independent charge) in the Vajpayee government and served until August 2001.
Vasundhara Raje and Atal Bihari Vajpayee
On January 20, 2003, she was appointed Union Minister of State for Small Industries; Personnel Training, Pensions, Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances; Department of Atomic Energy; On December 8, 2003, she became the first woman Chief Minister of Rajasthan minister. On December 14 of the same year, she took office as the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party. On January 2, 2009, she became the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly and served until December 2013. In the 2013 parliamentary elections, she defeated Indian National Congress member Meenakshi Chandrawat by more than 50,000 votes over Jalapathan. constituency. She has won Jalapathan constituency five times.
After losing the 2008 parliamentary elections, she reinvented herself and reorganized her cadre. She also undertook a 105-day pilgrimage covering 13,012 kilometers. On December 13, 2013, she took office as the Chief Minister of Rajasthan for the second time. During this period, she implemented a tourism sector policy in Rajasthan. On the social front, she introduced a mid-day meal scheme for mothers, an insurance scheme, transport vouchers for schoolgirls and skills training for workers.
December 8, 2013, Vasundhara Raje and Narendra Modi
Vasundhara Raje is contesting in the 2023 Rajasthan Legislative Assembly elections from Jalapathan constituency. She won the election defeating INC candidate Ram Lal Chouhan by 53,193 votes.
Vasundhara Raje after winning the 2023 Rajasthan Legislative Assembly elections
dispute
- Raj has been repeatedly attacked by the opposition for helping Lalit Modi (IPL founder and former administrator). When Lalit Modi faced corruption charges, she helped him fly out of India anonymously.
- When the Congress was in power in the state, the BJP criticized the Congress for granting mining leases to companies close to the Congress in the Aravalli hills of Rajasthan. Bharatiya Janata Party accuses Congress
3.40 Lakh Scam. When the BJP came to power in 2013, the Raj government supported leasing and justified it. The case caused greater controversy in the media.
Awards
In 2007, she received the “Women’s Solidarity Award” from the United Nations for her contribution to women’s empowerment. In 2017, she was awarded the Chief Minister of the Year award.
Vasundhara Raje receives Women’s Solidarity Award
Salary/Net Worth
As in 2013, she has Rs 32 lakh in bank deposits, Rs 15 million in bonds, debentures and shares, and jewelery worth over Rs 10 million. Her net worth is approximately Rs 4 Crore.
interesting facts
- Vasundhara Raje’s biography “Vasundhara Raje Aur Vikasit Rajasthan” is written by historian Vijay Nahar and published by Prabhat Prakashan.
Vasundhara Raj Biography
- Her sister Yashodhara Raje Scindia served as a cabinet minister in the Vasundhara Raje government.
- Her other sisters Usha Raje married into the royal Rana family of Nepal and the late Padmavati Raje married into the last of Tripura’s ruler Kirit Deb.
- She and her sisters challenged her brother’s Rs 20,000-crore property in court, however, her nephew Jyotiraditya Scindia claimed to be the sole heir of the property.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education