Sumitra Mahajan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 16th Speaker of the Lok Sabha | |
| In office 6 June 2014 – 17 June 2019 | |
| President | |
| Prime Minister | Narendra Modi |
| Deputy Speaker | M. Thambidurai |
| Leader of the House | Narendra Modi |
| Preceded by | Meira Kumar |
| Succeeded by | Om Birla |
| Union Minister of State, Government of India | |
| In office October 1999 – May 2004 | |
| Prime Minister | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
Ministry | Term |
| Petroleum and Natural Gas | March 2003 - May 2004 |
| Communication and Information Technology | June 2002 - May 2003 |
| Human Resource Development | October 1999 - June 2002 |
| Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha | |
| In office 1989–2019 | |
| Preceded by | Prakash Chandra Sethi |
| Succeeded by | Shankar Lalwani |
| Constituency | Indore |
| Deputy Mayor, Municipal Corporation, Indore | |
| In office 1984–1985 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Sumitra Sathe 12 April 1943 Chiplun, Bombay Presidency, British India (present-day Maharashtra, India) |
| Political party | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Other political affiliations | National Democratic Alliance |
| Spouse | Jayant Mahajan |
| Children | 2 sons |
| Parents |
|
| Alma mater | Indore University |
| Awards | Padma Bhushan (2021) |
Political offices
| |
Sumitra Mahajan (née Sathe; born 12 April 1943)[1] is an Indian politician who was the Speaker of Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament from 2014 to 2019.[2] She belongs to Bharatiya Janata Party. She represented the Indore constituency of Madhya Pradesh from 1989 to 2019 as the longest serving Woman Member of Parliament,[3]
She also served for as a Union Minister of State from 1999 to 2004, holding the portfolios for Human Resource Development, Communications and Information Technology and Petroleum and Natural Gas.[4] She also held position of Chairperson of Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment (2004-2009) and Standing Committee on Rural Development (2009-2014).[5] She was the eldest and seniormost among woman Members of Parliament in the 16th Lok Sabha. She is the second woman after Meira Kumar to be elected as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. She was awarded India's third highest civilian award the Padma Bhushan in 2021.[6][7]
Sumitra Mahajan was born in a Chitpavan Brahmin Marathi family to Usha and Purushottam Sathe in Chiplun, Maharashtra. She received her MA and LLB from Indore University (now Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya) after marrying Jayant Mahajan of Indore. Sumitra Mahajan's hobbies include reading, music, drama and cinema as well as an enthusiasm for singing. She has acknowledged the 18th century queen Ahilyabai Holkar as the inspirational figure throughout her life and has written a book on Ahilyabai Holkar's life journey 'Matoshree' which was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2017.
Sumitra Mahajan started her political career as a corporator in the Indore Municipal Corporation in 1982. She was later elected as Deputy Mayor of Indore Municipal Corporation in 1984. She ran for the first time and won the Lok Sabha elections in 1989, against former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Prakash Chandra Sethi. She is popularly known as Tai, among people of her constituency.[4]
On 6 June 2014, Mahajan was unanimously elected as the Speaker of the 16th Lok Sabha.[2] She had earlier worked as a member of the 'Panel of Chairmen' in the Lok Sabha.[8][9][10] She took the step of suspending 25 Congress MPs for five days (August 2015) from House for indiscipline in the House.[11]
Former chairperson of Indore-based Maharashtra Brahmin Cooperative Bank Anil Kumar Dhadwaiwale alleged Sumitra Mahajan and her son Milind Mahajan's roles were crucial in the scams that took place in the bank between 1997 and 2003.[13] Sumitra Mahajan was a minister in the Central Government during this period.
Milind Mahajan was one of the directors of the bank when the alleged scam took place. In 2005, an FIR in the scam was lodged at Central Kotwali Police Station, Indore against 16 persons including Milind Mahajan. But it was removed after the investigation. Many directors including, Sumitra Mahajan's Private Secretary's husband also obtained the loan. But did not pay.[14]
