Selja Kumari (born 24 September 1962) is an Indian politician and a Member of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of Indian parliament. She is a member of the Indian National Congress and has served as the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Social Justice and Empowerment and Tourism during Manmohan Singh's premiership.
Selja Kumari | |
|---|---|
 Selja Kumari | |
| Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha | |
| Assumed office 4 June 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Sunita Duggal |
| Constituency | Sirsa |
| In office 17 May 2004 – 16 May 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Rattan Lal Kataria |
| Succeeded by | Rattan Lal Kataria |
| Constituency | Ambala |
| In office 13 March 1991 – 1998 | |
| Preceded by | Het Ram |
| Succeeded by | Sushil kumar Indora |
| Constituency | Sirsa |
| President of Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee | |
| In office 4 September 2019 – 27 April 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Ashok Tanwar |
| Succeeded by | Udai Bhan |
| Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment | |
| In office 28 October 2012 – 28 January 2014 | |
| Prime Minister | Manmohan Singh |
| Preceded by | Mukul Wasnik |
| Succeeded by | Mallikarjun Kharge |
| Minister of Tourism | |
| In office 28 May 2009 – 19 January 2011 | |
| Prime Minister | Manmohan Singh |
| Preceded by | Ambika Soni |
| Succeeded by | Subodh Kant Sahay |
| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha | |
| In office 10 April 2014 – 2 April 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Ram Prakash |
| Succeeded by | Deepender Singh Hooda |
| Constituency | Haryana |
| General Secretary of the AICC incharge of Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee | |
| Assumed office 24 December 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Devender Yadav |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 24 September 1962 Parbhuwala, Punjab, India (now in Haryana, India) |
| Political party | Indian National Congress |
| Residence(s) | Hisar, Haryana |
| Education | M.A., M.Phil. |
| Profession | Agriculturist & Social Worker |
| Source: [1] | |
Selja was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1991 from Sirsa, a constituency that she retained in the 1996 elections. Following her election in 2009 to the Lok Sabha from Ambala, she was appointed the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment. Selja unsuccessfully contested the general elections in 2019 from Ambala, and following that made a return to state politics, being elected the president of the Haryana unit of the Congress party later that year.
She was a member of the Rajya Sabha from 2014 to 2020. In the 2024 Indian general election, she was elected to the Lok Sabha again from the Sirsa constituency.[1]
Early life & education
editSelja Kumari was born in a Chamar family on 24 September 1962 in Parbhuwala Hisar to Chaudhary Dalbir Singh, who was a politician from the Indian National Congress. She studied at the Convent of Jesus and Mary, New Delhi and later attended the Panjab University, where she completed her master's which is a postgraduate degree.[2]
Political career
editEarly career and electoral debut (1990–2003)
editSelja began her political career in the Mahila Congress becoming its President in 1990. She was elected to the 10th Lok Sabha in 1991 from Sirsa in Haryana. She was Union Minister of State for Education and Culture in the Narasimha Rao-led Congress government. Despite the Congress debacle in Haryana in 1996, she was re-elected to the 11th Lok Sabha.[2]
Selja began actively participating in international conferences and summits following her election to the 14th Lok Sabha in 2004. She was elected as a member of the Governing Board of Commonwealth Local Government Forum in 2005. She continued to engage with other such organisations as the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and also headed the Commonwealth Consultative Group on Human Settlements.[2]
Role under UPA governments (2004–2013)
editSelja also took the oath as the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation in the Manmohan Singh-led government that following the 2004 electoral victory.[2]
Following her election to the 15th Lok Sabha from Ambala, Selja was appointed the Minister of Tourism in Manmohan Singh's second cabinet. She visited such countries as Italy and Cyprus aimed at improving international relations during her time in office.[3]
In March 2011, Selja was issued notices by the Punjab and Haryana High Court over a petition that has accused her of "forgery, criminal intimidation, fabrication and hatching a criminal conspiracy". The petitioner, advocate B S Chahar, has alleged that Selja, who was "instrumental in instigating leaders and members of the Balmiki community against Jat leaders in Mirchpur case", tried to save herself from a litigation by pressurising the undertrials and forcing them to sign "blank and non judicial papers".[4]
Selja later took oath as Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment in 2012. She remained in office for five years until the completion of her term in May 2014, a period during which she worked on issues relating to empowerment of women and rights of marginalised communities.[2][5]
Move to Rajya Sabha and beyond (2014–present)
editSelja was elected to the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India, from her home state of Haryana in 2014.[6] She unsuccessfully contested the 2019 Indian general elections from Ambala, losing out to Bhartiya Janata Party's Rattan Lal Kataria.[7] Following that, she expressed a renewed interest in the politics of the state and was appointed the president of the Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee in September 2019, just ahead of the assembly elections scheduled for October.[8]
In the 2024 General Elections, Kumari Selja has been nominated by Indian National Congress to contest Lok Sabha election from Sirsa - SC parliamentary constituency.
Positions Held
edit| Period | Position |
|---|---|
| 14 Aug. 2024 onwards | Member of the Committee on Estimates |
| June 2024 | Elected to 18th Lok Sabha |
| 01-Dec-2022 - 2023 | General Secretary, AICC. Incharge |
| 06-Oct-2022 onwards | Member, Congress Steering Committee |
| 01-Jun-2022 onwards | Member, Congress Working Committee |
| 12-Sep-2019 - 2022 | President, Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee |
| 10-Sep-2014 - 2020 | Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture |
| 10-Apr-2014 - 2020 | Elected Member |
| 31 Jan. 2014 | Ceased to be a member of the Lok Sabha upon election as Member of Rajya Sabha |
| 28-Oct-2012 - 28-Jan-2014 | Union Cabinet Minister, Social Justice and Empowerment |
| 31-May-2009 - 18-Jan-2011 | Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Ministry of Tourism |
| 2009 | Re-elected to 15th Lok Sabha (4th term) |
| 2007-2009 | Elected President of 21st Governing Council of UN Habitat for a two year term |
| 2005 | Elected Member of the Governing Board of Commonwealth Local Government Forum |
| June 2006 | Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation |
| 2004 | Re-elected to 14th Lok Sabha (3rd term) |
| 1996-2004 | Secretary and Spokesperson, All India Congress Committee |
| 1996 | Re-elected to 11th Lok Sabha (2nd term) |
| Sept. 1995-May 1996 | Union Minister of State, Department of Education and Culture, Ministry of Human Resource Development |
| July 1992-Sept. 1995 | Union Deputy Minister, Dept. of Education & Culture, Ministry of Human Resource Development |
| 1991 | Elected to 10th Lok Sabha |
| 1990 | Joint Secretary, All India Mahila Congress |
References
edit- ^ The Economic Times (6 June 2024). "Bullish Wins & Bearish Losses: Here are the key contests and results of 2024 Lok Sabha polls". Archived from the original on 27 July 2024. Retrieved 27 July 2024.
- ^ a b c d e "Detailed profile: Kumari Selja". Government of India. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
- ^ "Annual Report 2010-11" (PDF). Ministry of External Affairs. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
- ^ "HC notice to Kumari Selja for 'threatening' Mirchpur accused". The Indian Express. 11 March 2011. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
- ^ "Meet the Ministers - Cabinet Minister". Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
- ^ Pushpan, Shikha (18 May 2014). "Kumari Selja may lead Haryana Congress after party's rout in Lok Sabha polls: sources". News18. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
- ^ "Live Ambala Lok Sabha Results". NDTV. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
- ^ Kumar, Vikrant Singh (4 September 2019). "Congress appoints Kumari Selja as new state party president of Haryana". India Today. Retrieved 12 October 2019.