Meira Kumar (born 31 March 1945) is an Indian politician and former diplomat. A member of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

, she was the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment from 2004 to 2009, the Minister of Water Resources for a brief period in 2009. She served as the 15th Speaker of Lok Sabha from 2009 to 2014, being the first woman to hold the post. Kumar became just the second woman to be nominated for

president of India The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

by a major political block when she secured the

United Progressive Alliance The United Progressive Alliance (UPA; Hindi: Saṁyukta Pragatiśīl Gaṭhabandhan) was a Political group, political alliance in India led by the Indian National Congress. It was formed after the 2004 Indian general election, 2004 general ele ...

's nomination in 2017. Prior to being a member of the 15th Lok Sabha, Kumar had been elected earlier to the

8th Eighth is ordinal form of the number eight. Eighth may refer to: * One eighth, , a fraction, one of eight equal parts of a whole * Eighth note (quaver), a musical note played for half the value of a quarter note (crotchet) * Octave, an interval b ...

, 11th, 12th and

14th Lok Sabha The 14th Lok Sabha (2 June 2004 – 18 May 2009) was convened after the 2004 Indian general election held in four phases during 20 April – 10 May 2004, which led to the formation of first Manmohan Singh ministry (2004–2009). Indian National ...

. Kumar was the joint presidential candidate by the leading opposition parties for 2017 presidential election and lost the election to the NDA nominee Ram Nath Kovind. Meira Kumar's vote share is the third highest for a losing candidate, that of

Neelam Sanjiva Reddy Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (19 May 1913 – 1 June 1996) was an Indian politician who served as the president of India, serving from 1977 to 1982. Beginning a long political career with the Indian National Congress Party in the independence movem ...

in the 1969 Presidential elections and K. Subba Rao in 1967 Presidential elections.

Early life

Meira Kumar was born on 31 March 1945, in Bhojpur district,

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

of the

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

(present day Bihar, India) to

Jagjivan Ram Jagjivan Ram (5 April 1908 – 6 July 1986), popularly known as Babuji, was an Indian independence activist and politician who served as a minister with various portfolios for over 30 years, making him the List of longest-serving members of the ...

, an Depressed Class leader and former

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

and Indrani Devi, a prominent leader of the Indian freedom struggle. Growing up, Kumar shared a close relationship with her mother, with whom she spent most of her time. She has described her as the biggest influence from her childhood. Kumar attended the Welham Girls School,

Dehradun Dehradun (), also known as Dehra Doon, is the winter capital and the List of cities in Uttarakhand by population, most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous Dehradun district, d ...

and Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls' Public School in

Jaipur Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...

. She studied at Banasthali Vidyapith for a short duration. She completed her

Master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

and Bachelors of Law from Indraprastha College and the Faculty of Law, University of Delhi respectively. She also received an honorary doctorate from Banasthali Vidyapith in 2010. Kumar worked as a

social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...

er during her youth, actively participating in movements supporting

social reform Reformism is a type of social movement that aims to bring a social or also a political system closer to the community's ideal. A reform movement is distinguished from more radical social movements such as revolutionary movements which reject t ...

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

, and democratic ideas. She was appointed as the Chairperson of National Drought Relief Committee constituted by the

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

during 1967 famine in region of Bihar. As the head of the commission, Kumar launched a Family Adoption Scheme under which drought-affected families were provided support from volunteering households.

Career

Foreign Service

Kumar joined the

Indian Foreign Service The Indian Foreign Service (IFS) is a diplomatic service and a Central Civil Services, central civil service of the Government of India, Government of the Republic of India under the Ministry of External Affairs (India), Ministry of External A ...

in 1973 and was posted as language trainee at the Embassy of India

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

. During this period, she obtained a diploma in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

. Later, she was posted at the High Commission of India, United Kingdom . After working as a diplomat for a decade, Kumar quit the Indian Foreign Services in 1985 and decided to enter politics after being encouraged by her father Jagjivan Ram and later Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi .

Political career

Kumar entered electoral politics in 1985, when she received an

' nomination for the

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

from the Bijnor constituency bye-poll in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. She defeated, as a newcomer, two veteran

dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...

leaders including Ram Vilas Paswan of the

Janata Dal Janata Dal () was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha on 11 October 1988—the birth anniversary of Jayaprakash Na ...

and

Mayawati Kumari Mayawati (born Kumari Mayawati Das; 15 January 1956) is an Indian politician who served as the 18th Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh from 1995 to 1995, 1997 to 1997, 2002 to 2003 and from 2007 to 2012. She is the national president of t ...

of the Bahujan Samajwadi Party. Following her election to the Lok Sabha, Kumar was appointed as member of the Ministry of External Affairs' Consultative Committee in 1986. Meera Kumar lost elections for 9th Lok Sabha (1989) and 10th Lok Sabha from

Sasaram Sasaram (), also spelled as Shahasaram, is a historical city and a municipal corporation region in the Rohtas district of Bihar state in eastern India. The city served as the capital of the Sur dynasty during Sher Shah Suri's rule over India in ...

, but went on to win elections for the 11th (in 1996) and the 12th

s from

Karol Bagh Karol Bagh (also spelled Qarol Bagh, ) is a neighborhood in Central District of Delhi, India. It is a mixed residential and commercial neighborhood known for shopping streets, such as the Ghaffar Market and Ajmal Khan Road. It was home to th ...

in Delhi. She lost her seat to the candidate from the

Bhartiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's Bharatiya Jana Sangh. Since 2014, ...

in 1999 election, but was able re-elected with a significant majority from her father's former constituency of Sasaram in Bihar in 2004 and 2009. In the 2014 general election and in 2019, Kumar contested from Sasaram and lost both times to her nemesis Chhedi Paswan who has defeated her in Sasaram four times. Following the Congress party's win in the

2004 Indian general elections General elections were held in India in four phases between 20 April and 10 May 2004. Over 670 million people were eligible to vote, electing 543 members of the 14th Lok Sabha. Seven states also held assembly elections to elect state governmen ...

, Kumar served in the

's Government as the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment from 2004 to 2009, under the premiership of

Manmohan Singh Manmohan Singh (26 September 1932 – 26 December 2024) was an Indian economist, bureaucrat, academician, and statesman, who served as the prime minister of India from 2004 to 2014. He was the fourth longest-serving prime minister after Jaw ...

. She entered active politics in the year 1985. She has been a Lok Sabha MP five times. She has also been a minister in the central government. In 2009, the United Progressive Alliance returned to power after an improved performance in the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

and Kumar was, on 22 May 2009, briefly inducted as member of the centre's cabinet as the Minister for Water Resources. However, she was later nominated for the position of the

Speaker of Lok Sabha The Speaker of the Lok Sabha (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ) is the Chairperson, presiding officer and the highest authority of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Parliament of India. The speaker is elected gener ...

and she submitted her resignation three days after assuming ministerial office. Kumar was then elected as the first ever woman speaker of Lok Sabha and remained in office from 2009 to 2014.

2017 presidential election

Kumar secured the

's nomination for the 2017 Indian presidential election, becoming just the third woman to be nominated for president of India by a major

political bloc A parliamentary group, parliamentary caucus or political group is a group consisting of members of different political party, political parties or independent politicians with similar ideologies. Some parliamentary systems allow smaller politic ...

, after

Pratibha Patil Pratibha Devisingh Patil (born 19 December 1934), also known as Pratibha Patil Shekhawat, is an Indian politician and lawyer who served as the president of India from 2007 to 2012. She was the first woman to become the president of India. A m ...

. Although she received support from most of the major opposition parties for her election to the office, she went on to lose to the

National Democratic Alliance The National Democratic Alliance (NDA; ISO 15919, ISO: ''Rāṣṭrīya Lokatāntrik Gaṭhabandhan'') is an Indian big tent Political group, multi-party political alliance, led by the country's biggest political party, the Bharatiya Janata Pa ...

nominee Ram Nath Kovind. Kovind received a total of 2,930 votes (which included both Members of Parliament and

Members Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

of the Legislative Assemblies) amounting to electoral college votes of 702,044. He defeated Kumar, who received a total of 1,844 votes amounting to 367,314 votes in terms of electoral college.

National Legislators' Conference

* In September 2022, Meira Kumar was appointed as a key patron of NLC Bharat.

Lok Sabha electoral history

Meira Kumar has been elected 5 times as

MP. She lost from Sasaram in 2019.

Explanatory notes

References

External links

Meira Kumar Biography
Govt. of India Portal
Kamal Nath gives clean chit to Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar in bungalow controversy
, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Kumar, Meira 1945 births Living people 20th-century Indian lawyers 20th-century Indian women politicians 21st-century Indian lawyers 21st-century Indian women politicians India MPs 1984–1989 India MPs 1996–1997 India MPs 1998–1999 India MPs 2004–2009 India MPs 2009–2014 Candidates for President of India English-language writers from India Indian Foreign Service officers Indian National Congress politicians from Bihar Indraprastha College for Women alumni Lok Sabha members from Bihar Lok Sabha members from Delhi Lok Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh People from Bhojpur district, India People from Central Delhi district People from Sasaram Speakers of the Lok Sabha United Progressive Alliance candidates in the 2014 Indian general election Delhi University alumni Women members of the Cabinet of India Women in Bihar politics People from Bijnor district Welham Girls' School alumni 20th-century Indian women lawyers 21st-century Indian women lawyers Women members of the Lok Sabha Women legislative speakers in India