Kamala (Kamla) Sinha (30 September 1932 – 31 December 2014) was an Indian politician and diplomat. She was twice elected to the

Rajya Sabha The Rajya Sabha, constitutionally the Council of States, is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of India. , it has a maximum membership of 245, of which 233 are elected by the legislatures of the states and union territories using si ...

from 1990 to 2000, and later served as Ambassador to

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...

and

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

. She was also

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

(MoS) for external affairs (Independent Charge) in the cabinet of

I. K. Gujral Inder Kumar Gujral (4 December 1919 – 30 November 2012) was an Indian diplomat, politician and freedom activist who served as the 12th prime minister of India from April 1997 to March 1998. Born in Punjab, he was influenced by nationalist ...

. She died in

Syracuse, New York Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...

, on December 31, 2014, aged 82.

Personal life

Born in

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

(now in

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

) on September 30, 1932, Sinha, a grandniece of Jan Sangh founder

Syama Prasad Mukherjee Syama Prasad Mukherjee (6 July 1901 – 23 June 1953) was an Indian politician, barrister and academician, who served as India's first Minister for Industry and Supply (currently known as Ministry of Commerce and Industry) in Jawaharlal Nehru' ...

, was married to Basawon Sinha, revolutionary, nationalist, socialist, trade unionist and the first leader of opposition in

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...

Politics

A two-term member of Bihar legislative council between 1972–84 and also a two-term member of Rajya Sabha, she had been a member of various committees. Her husband Basawon Sinha was a freedom fighter and colleague of

Jayaprakash Narayan Jayaprakash Narayan (; 11 October 1902 – 8 October 1979), popularly referred to as JP or ''Lok Nayak'' (Hindi for "People's leader"), was an Indian independence activist, theorist, socialist and political leader. He is remembered for le ...

and Karpoori Thakur. She was detained under Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) during the JP-led movement. She had been president of Hind Mazdoor Sabha for several years (the only woman to have ever become President of a central labour federation) and travelled extensively across the world in several capacities.

References

External links

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgjW-JmUKCk * https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7sgHzHP8Lo 1932 births 2014 deaths Rajya Sabha members from Bihar Women in Bihar politics Ambassadors of India to Suriname High Commissioners of India to Barbados Janata Dal politicians 21st-century Indian women politicians 21st-century Indian politicians 20th-century Indian women politicians 20th-century Indian politicians People from Dhaka Members of the Bihar Legislative Council Indian women ambassadors Women members of the Rajya Sabha Praja Socialist Party politicians {{India-diplomat-stub