Shanta Kumar Sharma (born 12 September 1934) is an Indian politician who was the 3rd Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh and a Union Minister in the Government of India. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was elected to the 9th Lok Sabha from Kangra constituency in 1989. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in 1998, 1999 and 2014 from the same constituency. He has written a number of books. He is the first and only person not of a Rajput background who has served as the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.[1]
Shanta Kumar | |
|---|---|
 Kumar in 2006 | |
| 3rd Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh | |
| In office 22 June 1977 – 14 February 1980 | |
| Preceded by | President's Rule |
| Succeeded by | Thakur Ram Lal |
| In office 5 March 1990 – 15 December 1992 | |
| Preceded by | Virbhadra Singh |
| Succeeded by | Virbhadra Singh |
| Member of Parliament for Kangra | |
| In office 16 May 2014 – 23 May 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Rajan Sushant |
| Succeeded by | Kishan Kapoor |
| Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution | |
| In office 13 October 1999 – 30 June 2002 | |
| Prime Minister | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| Succeeded by | Sharad Yadav |
| Constituency | Kangra |
| Minister of Rural Development | |
| In office 1 July 2002 – 6 April 2003 | |
| Prime Minister | Atal Bihari Vajpayee |
| Preceded by | Venkaiah Naidu |
| Succeeded by | Kashiram Rana |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 September 1934 Kangra, Punjab, British India (now in Himachal Pradesh, India) |
| Political party | Bharatiya Jana Sangh(till 1977)
Janata Party(1977-1980) Bharatiya Janata Party(1980-Present) |
| Spouse | Santosh Shailja |
| Residence(s) | Yamini Parisar, Palampur, Distt. Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India |
Early life
editShanta Kumar Sharma was born to Jagannath Sharma and Kaushalya Devi on 12 September 1934 in Garhjamula, Kangra district, Punjab Province.[2]
Political career
editHis political career began in 1963 when he was elected as a Panch in the Gram panchayat for Garhjamula. He was subsequently elected as a member of the Panchayat Samiti in Bhawarna and then was president of Zilla Parishad in Kangra from 1965 to 1970.[3]
He was elected to the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 1972. He remained a member till 1985. He was re-elected to the House again in 1990 and continued till 1992. He became the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh in 1977.[4] He held the post till 1980 and came back to head the Government again in 1990 and stayed till 1992.[5] He had enforced "No Work, No Pay" policy during his second term as Chief Minister for strongly dealing with the striking government employees.[4] He was the Leader of Opposition in the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 1980 to 1985.[6]
He was elected to the 9th Lok Sabha in 1989 from Kangra. He was re-elected twice in 1998 and 1999. He was a senior minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government from 1999 to 2004.[4] He was Union Minister of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution from 1999 to 2002 and Union Minister of Rural Development from 2002 to 2004.[4][6]
He was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Himachal Pradesh in 2008.[7] In 2014, he was elected to the 16th Lok Sabha from Kangra.[8] In 2014-15 he chaired a committee on the restructuring of the Food Corporation of India (FCI).[9]
Personal background
editHe was married to Santosh Shailja in 1964.[10][11] He has three daughters Indu Sharma, Renu Mujumdar, Shalini Sathyan and a son Vikram Sharma.[12] His wife died in December 2020 due to coronavirus at Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Tanda.[11] She worked as teacher in initial years but later quit her job and switched over to writing and social work among women and underprivileged sections and also wrote some books.[10]
Election results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BJP | Shanta Kumar | 4,56,163 | 57.05 | +8.37 | |
| INC | Chander Kumar | 2,86,091 | 35.79 | −9.76 | |
| AAP | Dr. Rajan Sushant | 24,430 | 3.06 | +3.06 | |
| NOTA | None of the Above | 8,704 | 1.09 | +1.09 | |
| Majority | 1,70,072 | 21.27 | +18.13 | ||
| Turnout | 7,99,445 | 64.46 | +9.31 | ||
| BJP hold | Swing | +8.37 | |||
Writing
editKumar's books include:[13]
- Dharti Balidan Ki, 1962
- Himalaya Par Lal Chhaya, 1964
- Vishwa Vijeta Vivekanand, 1968
- Lajo, 1976
- Man Ke Meet, 1976
- Kaidi, 1976
- Jyotirmayi, 1977
- O Pravasi Meet Mere, 1977
- Mrigtrishna, 1980
- Kranti Abhi Adhoori Hai, 1985
- Deewar Ke Us Paar, 1995
- Rajneeti Ki Shatranj, 1997
- Tumhare Pyar Ki Pati, 1999
- Vrinda, 2007
- A Patriot monk Swami Vivekananda, 2012
References
edit- ^ "Jai Ram Thakur's Himachal cabinet has a distinctly Rajput flavour". 27 December 2017.
- ^ "Biographical Sketch: Member of Parliament: 13th Lok Sabha". parliamentofindia.nic.in. Archived from the original on 1 February 2013. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
- ^ "National Portal of India". india.gov.in. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
- ^ a b c d Bipin, Bhardwaj (24 March 2019). "After Advani, roads closed for veteran BJP leader Shanta Kumar too, party hunts for new face in Himachal". National Herald. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
- ^ "Shanta Kumar : Niti Central". niticentral.com. Archived from the original on 11 April 2013. Retrieved 5 February 2013.
- ^ a b "13th Lok Sabha Member Profile". Government of India. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
- ^ Members Page
- ^ "Kangra(Himachal Pradesh) Lok Sabha Election Results 2014 with ..."
- ^ "Recommendations of High Level Committee on restructuring of FCI". Press Information Bureau, Government of India. Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution. 22 January 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ a b "Former Himachal Pradesh CM Shanta Kumar's Wife Dies of Covid". Outlook. 29 December 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
- ^ a b "Former Union minister Shanta Kumar to undergo Covid treatment at Mohali hospital". Hindustan Times. 30 December 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
- ^ "Senior BJP leader Shanta Kumar, son admitted to Mohali hospital for Covid-19 treatment". ANI News. ANI. 30 December 2020. Retrieved 24 February 2021.
- ^ "Kumar Shanta". Retrieved 22 June 2016.