Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi (born 28 June 1952) is an Indian politician from

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

and currently a member of

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, constitutionally the House of the People, is the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, with the upper house being the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by an adult universal suffrage and a first-past ...

. He was

Union Minister of State The Union Council of Ministers Article 58 of the ''Constitution of India'' is the principal executive organ of the Government of India, which is responsible for being the senior decision making body of the executive branch. It is chaired by t ...

for

Drinking Water Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, a ...

and

Sanitation Sanitation refers to public health conditions related to clean drinking water and treatment and disposal of human excreta and sewage. Preventing human contact with feces is part of sanitation, as is hand washing with soap. Sanitation systems ...

in 2016. He was member of the Twelfth, Thirteenth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth and

Sixteenth The 16th century begins with the Julian calendar, Julian year 1501 (Roman numerals, MDI) and ends with either the Julian or the Gregorian calendar, Gregorian year 1600 (Roman numerals, MDC) (depending on the reckoning used; the Gregorian calendar ...

. He was inducted into PM, Narendra Modi's government as a Minister of State for Drinking Water & Sanitation on July 5, 2016. He represents the

Bijapur Bijapur, officially known as Vijayapura, is the district headquarters of Bijapur district of the Karnataka state of India. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluk. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural ...

constituency (2019-2024) and is currently a member of the

Bharatiya 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. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

which he joined in 2002. He has also been a member of

Janata Dal Janata Dal (“People’s Party”) was an List of political parties in India, Indian political party which was formed through the merger of Janata Party factions, the Lok Dal, Indian National Congress (Jagjivan), and the Jan Morcha united on 11 ...

and Ramakrishna Hegde's Vedike Party and Ram Vilas Paswan's Jan Shakti Party in 2001 when Hegde was planning to retire.

Early life and education

Ramesh Jigajinagi was born on 28 June 1952 in

Atharga Atharga is a village in the southern state of Karnataka, India.Village code= 209800 Atharga, Bijapur, Karnataka It is located in the Indi taluk of Bijapur district in Karnataka. Demographics India census, Atharga had a population of 8610 w ...

village of Bijapur District in

to Chandappa and Bhoramma Jigajinagi. He married Shoba and has two sons, Vinod and Anand, both businessmen. He completed his B.A from BLDEA's New Arts College, Bijapur and later earned his master's degree. Ramesh is a dalit and hails from a

Scheduled Caste The Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) are officially designated groups of people and among the most disadvantaged socio-economic groups in India. The terms are recognized in the Constitution of India and the groups are designa ...

community.

Career

He has been able to retain support in northern Karnataka, even after switching parties. His electoral victory is significant, contesting and winning his seat against B. Shankaranand of the

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...

'. Ramesh entered the 12th Lok Sabha with a margin of 1,31,238 votes. Initially, he joined the undivided

under the mentorship of

Ramakrishna Hegde Ramakrishna Mahabaleshwar Hegde (29 August 1926 – 12 January 2004) was an Indian politician who served as the tenth Chief Minister of Karnataka for three terms between 1983 and 1988. He was elected to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly in 19 ...

. He remained in the Janta Dal and was a staunch supporter of Ramakrishna Hegde. When Ramakrishna Hegde floated the Rashtreeya Nava Nirmana Vedike, he was among the earliest sitting MLAs to support him and join the new party by resigning his ministership. Later, he joined

Lok Shakti Lok Shakti ( lit. People's Power) is a political party in India. Lok Shakti was one of several parties that were formed when the Janata Dal crumbled in the mid-1990s. LS was formed in February 1997 after Ramakrishna Hegde was expelled from Janata ...

, a party formed by Ramakrishna Hegde and rejoined Janata Dal United after the merger of Lok Shakti with the former. After the death of his mentor, he joined the

. He was elected as MP for five times without a break. He was elected as an MP for the first time in 1996 from Chikkodi, a constituency reserved from SC community, on Lok Shakti ticket. In 1998, he won again on Janata Dal ticket and on BJP ticket in 2004, both from Chikkodi. Later, he returned to Bijapur, his native after Chikkodi became an unreserved seat. From then on he won the Bijapur SC seat, which is now Vijayapura.

Positions held

* Member of Karnataka Legislative Assembly 1983- 1985, 1985-1989, 1994-1999 (3 terms) * Minister of State, Home Department in the Government of Karnataka 1983 * Minister of State, Excise Department in the Government of Karnataka 1984-1985 * Cabinet Minister for Social Welfare and Revenue in the Government of Karnataka 1996-1998 * Member of the 12th Loksabha 1998-1999 (Winning Margin=131238). From Chikkodi on Lok Shakti ticket. * Member of the 13th Lok Sabha 1999-2004 (Winning Margin=84590) * Member of the 14th Lok Sabha 2004-2009 (Winning Margin=43492), for BJP. * Member of the 15th Lok Sabha 2009-2014 (Winning Margin=42404) From Bijapur. * Member of the 16th Lok Sabha 2014- 2019 (Winning Margin=69819) * Member of the 17th Lok Sabha 2019 - 2024 (Winning Margin = 2,58,038) * Member of the 18th Lok Sabha 2024 - (Winning Margin = 77229) * He has served as the member in the following committees * Parliamentary Consultative Committee, Ministry of Finance * Parliamentary Committee on Absence of Members from the sittings of the House * Parliamentary Committee on Commerce * Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs and its Sub-Committee on Personnel Policy of Central Para-Military Forces * Union Minister of State for Drinking Water & Sanitation 2016

External links

Ramesh Jigajinagi's home page on Lok Sabha's Website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jigajinagi, Ramesh 1952 births Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Karnataka Living people India MPs 1998–1999 India MPs 1999–2004 India MPs 2004–2009 India MPs 2009–2014 People from Bijapur district, Karnataka Lok Sabha members from Karnataka India MPs 2014–2019 Janata Dal politicians Janata Dal (United) politicians Lok Janshakti Party politicians Narendra Modi ministry India MPs 2019–2024 Lok Shakti politicians India MPs 2024–2029

Early life and education

Career

Positions held

See also

External links

References