Jai Prakash

Jai Prakash is an Indian politician and a Member of Parliament (MP) from the Lok Sabha constituency of Hardoi in the state of Uttar Pradesh. He is currently a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Jai Prakash is a veteran in politics and has been a Lok Sabha MP multiple times. He has also served as a member of Rajya Sabha. During his political career, he has largely been loyal to his party. However, in 1999, he had joined a new party named Akhil Bhartiya Loktantrik Congress. He later returned to BJP.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Jai Prakash defeated his nearest rival Usha Verma of Samajwadi Party (SP) by a margin of more than one lakh votes. It was supposed to be a tough contest since the opposition had united to fight against BJP. However, Jai Prakash was able to win by a comfortable margin, as he has good rapport with people in his constituency. In percentage terms, his vote share was 53.72 percent, as compared to 41.20 percent of nearest rival.

One of the key traits associated with Jai Prakash is that he is very vocal about expressing his views and opinions. He likes to speak the truth and does not seem to mind even if he is pointing to mistakes or negligence of his own party or government. In 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic, Jai Prakash had openly criticized his own government officials for not carrying out their duties in a responsible manner.

Being sensitive to the problems being faced by common man and focus on resolving them is one of the key reasons why Jai Prakash is liked by people in his constituency.

Early Life and Education

Jai Prakash was born on April 16, 1958 to Shri Jagannath Prasad and Smt. Vidyawati. He was born in Lucknow, the capital city of Uttar Pradesh. His educational qualifications include B.A., LL.B. and he received education at Lucknow University. By profession, Jai Prakash is an agriculturist, social worker and businessperson. He married Jyoti Prakash in September 1985.

Political Career

• 1991: Elected to 10th Lok Sabha
• 1991-93: Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Mines
• 1993-96: Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas; Member, Committee on Commerce
• 1996: Re-elected to 11th Lok Sabha
• 1999: Re-elected to 13th Lok Sabha
• 1999-2000: Member, Committee on Food, Civil Supplies and Public Distribution; Member, Committee on Subordinate Legislation
• 4 August 2009 – 2 April 2012: Member, Rajya Sabha
• May, 2019: Re-elected to 17th Lok Sabha
• 13 Sept. 2019 onwards: Member, Standing Committee on Energy; Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas

Personal Pursuits

In his free time, Jai Prakash likes to read and watch movies. He is also fond of travelling and visiting historical monuments. In sports, he likes cricket, badminton and indoor games. Jai Prakash also spends time and resources on various philanthropic projects that seek to help the marginalized sections of the society.