Uma Bharti

A firebrand leader with spiritual leanings

Uma Bharti is an Indian politician and a Member of Parliament (MP) from Lok Sabha. She is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and has been associated with the organization since an early age. With her religious and spiritual leanings, coupled with her single-minded focus on welfare of the masses, she leads the life of a Sadhvi, the Hindu term used respectfully to describe a female renunciant. She is unlike any other politician, and her radical style of functioning has enabled her to win the hearts of the masses. She has actively campaigned for BJP in various elections and was given the responsibility to improve the party’s position in Uttar Pradesh, ahead of the 2012 state assembly elections. Later, she was appointed as vice-president in a team that was tasked with strategizing the party’s plan of action for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Early Life and Education

Uma Bharti was born on May 3, 1959 in Dunda, Tikamgarh District in the state of Madhya Pradesh to a family of peasants. She studied till sixth standard, after which she left the conventional schooling platform, as she had considerable interest in religion and spirituality since an early age. As she started giving religious discourses when she was just a child, the word spread about her being a ‘spiritual child’. Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia, a member of the royal family and a prominent politician, took notice of this child and decided to raise her like one of her own. Scindia would later become the political mentor of Uma Bharti.

Political Career

Uma Bharti came into prominence after she took part in the Ramjanmabhoomi movement alongside L. K. Advani and others. In the following years, she contested LokSabha elections. She has won from Khajuraho, Bhopal, and Jhansi.

• 1988 onwards: Vice-President, Bharatiya Janata Party (B.J.P.), Madhya Pradesh
• 1989: Elected to 9th Lok Sabha
• 1990: Member, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Agriculture
• 1990-92: Member, Consultative Committee, Constituted under the Punjab State Legislature (Delegation of Power) Act, 1987
• 1991: Re-elected to 10th Lok Sabha (2nd term)
• 1991-93: Member, Public Accounts Committee
• 1993: President, B.J.P., Youth Wing
• 1996: Re-elected to 11th Lok Sabha (3rd term)
• 1996-97: Member, Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Environment and Forests
• 1998: Re-elected to 12th Lok Sabha (4th term)
• 1998-99: Union Minister of State, Human Resource Development
• 1999: Re-elected to 13th Lok Sabha (5th term) (resigned from Lok Sabha Seat on 18.12.2003
• 13 Oct. 1999– 2 Feb. 2000: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Tourism (Resigned on 2 Feb. 2000)
• 7 Nov. 2000- 25 Aug. 2002: Union Cabinet Minister, Youth Affairs & Sports
• 26 Aug. 2002- 29 Jan. 2003: Union Cabinet Minister, Coal and Mines
• 2003 – Aug. 2004: Chief Minister, Madhya Pradesh.
• March 2012 – May 2014: Member, U.P. Legislative Assembly
• May, 2014: Re-elected to 16th Lok Sabha (6th term)
• 27 May 2014 onwards: Union Cabinet Minister, Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation

Personal pursuits

Uma Bharti has interests in reading& writing, watching movies, travelling and driving. In sports, she likes badminton and swimming.