Age, Biography, and Wiki
- Birth Date: February 14, 1952
- Birth Place: Ambala, Haryana
- Death Date: August 6, 2019
- Profession: Politician, Lawyer
- Sushma Swaraj was a notable figure in Indian politics, serving in various roles such as Chief Minister of Delhi and Minister of External Affairs. She was recognized for her strong leadership and advocacy skills.
| Occupation | Politician |
|---|---|
| Date of Birth | 14 February 1952 |
| Age | 73 Years |
| Birth Place | Ambala Cantonment, Punjab, India (present-day Haryana) |
| Horoscope | Aquarius |
| Country | India |
| Date of death | 6 August, 2019 |
| Died Place | New Delhi, Delhi, India |
Height, Weight & Measurements
Information regarding Sushma Swaraj's height and weight is not widely documented. However, she was admired for her stature in Indian politics rather than physical attributes.
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Dating & Relationship Status
- Spouse: Swaraj Kaushal
- Children: One daughter, Bansuri Swaraj
- Sushma Swaraj was married to Swaraj Kaushal, a senior advocate at the Supreme Court of India. Her family played a significant role in her life, with her husband and daughter being integral parts of her personal and professional journey.
Her father was a prominent Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh member. Her parents hailed from the Dharampura area of Lahore, Pakistan. She was educated at Sanatan Dharma College in Ambala Cantonment and earned a bachelor's degree with majors in Sanskrit and Political Science. She studied law at Panjab University, Chandigarh. A state-level competition held by the Language Department of Haryana saw her winning the best Hindi Speaker award for three consecutive years. Sushma Swaraj was a strict vegetarian.
In 1973, Swaraj started practice as an advocate in the Supreme Court of India. She began her political career with Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad in the 1970s. Her husband, Swaraj Kaushal, was closely associated with the socialist leader George Fernandes and Sushma Swaraj became a part of George Fernandes's legal defence team in 1975. She actively participated in Jayaprakash Narayan's Total Revolution Movement. After the Emergency, she joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. Later, she became a national leader of the BJP.
As Minister of External Affairs of the NDA government, Swaraj issued an NOC against a specific query raised by the UK government about the Indo-UK bilateral relationship if the UK granted permission to Lalit Modi, an Indian fugitive in a cricket scandal who had been staying in Britain since 2010, to attend his wife's surgery in Portugal. She conveyed to the British High Commissioner that they should examine Modi's request as per their rules and wrote "if the British government chooses to give travel documents to Lalit Modi -– that will not spoil our bilateral relations". However, some people mentioned this incident as Swaraj helping Lalit Modi in the travel visa process.
In December 2015, the Norwegian government took custody of an Indian origin child from his parents citing child abuse. Swaraj, then the External Affairs Minister, stepped in after the mother of the child formally requested help from Indian government.
| Parents | |
| Husband | Swaraj Kaushal (m. 1975) |
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Net Worth and Salary
- At the time of her Rajya Sabha nomination in 2006, Sushma Swaraj was reported as the wealthiest among BJP candidates. Her net worth comprised cash, bank deposits, RBI bonds, and other financial instruments.
- Her financial assets included:
- Cash and bank deposits amounting to approximately Rs 50,000 in personal accounts and additional funds in her spouse's accounts.
- RBI bonds and Government of India bonds.
- A Public Provident Fund (PPF) with a significant amount.
- Immobile properties, including a flat and land in Bhopal and Haryana.
Career, Business, and Investments
- Career:
- Sushma Swaraj was a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and served multiple terms in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
- She was the first woman Chief Minister of Delhi (1998).
- Notable ministerial roles included Minister of Information and Broadcasting and Minister of External Affairs (2014-2019).
- Business and Investments:
- There is no specific information highlighting personal business ventures. However, her political career and leadership roles significantly influenced Indian politics and international relations.
After a tenure in national level politics, she resigned from the Union Cabinet in October 1998 to take over as the Chief Minister of Delhi. She became the first female Chief Minister of Delhi. Swaraj resigned from the position in December the same year.
She was re-elected to the 12th Lok Sabha from South Delhi Parliamentary constituency for a second term, in March 1998. Under the second PM Vajpayee Government, she was sworn in as Union Cabinet Minister for Information and Broadcasting with an additional charge of the Ministry of Telecommunications from 19 March 1998 to 12 October 1998. Her most notable decision during this period was to declare film production as an industry, which made the Indian film industry eligible for bank finance. She also started community radio at universities and other institutions.
She returned to Parliament in April 2000 as a Rajya Sabha member from Uttar Pradesh. She was reallocated to Uttrakhand when the new state was carved out of Uttar Pradesh on 9 November 2000. She was inducted into the Union Cabinet as Minister for Information and Broadcasting, a position she held from September 2000 until January 2003.
She won the 2009 election for the 15th Lok Sabha from the Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency in Madhya Pradesh by the highest margin of over 400,000 votes. Sushma Swaraj became Leader of Opposition in the 15th Lok Sabha in place of Lal Krishna Advani on 21 December 2009, and retained this position until May 2014 when, in the 2014 Indian general election, her party won a major victory.
Swaraj had served as the Indian Minister of External Affairs under Prime Minister Narendra Modi from May 2014 to May 2019. She was responsible for implementing the foreign policy of Narendra Modi. She was only the second woman to hold this position after Indira Gandhi.
Social Network
- Sushma Swaraj was known for her interaction with the public through social media, particularly Twitter, where she was active and responsive to queries and grievances. Her social media presence was a testament to her effort to connect with the public and address their concerns.
Education
- Graduation: Sushma Swaraj was a law graduate.
- She began her career as an advocate and later became a Supreme Court lawyer, which laid the foundation for her political career.
In summary, Sushma Swaraj's life was marked by her influential political career, strong family ties, and her commitment to public service. Her financial status was significant for her political stature, though specific figures are not available post-2019.
She was a member of the Haryana Legislative Assembly from 1977 to 1982, winning the Ambala Cantonment assembly seat at the age of 25; and then, again from 1987 to 1990. In July 1977, she was sworn in as a Cabinet Minister in the Janata Party Government headed by then Chief Minister Devi Lal. She held the Labour and Employment ministries from 1977 to 1979. Later she became Minister of Education, Food and Civil supplies during 1987 to 1990. She became State President of the Janata Party (Haryana) in 1979, at the age of 27. She was Education Minister of Haryana state in the Bharatiya Janata Party–Lok Dal coalition government from 1987 to 1990.
The couple has a daughter, Bansuri, who is a graduate from Oxford University and a Barrister at Law from Inner Temple. Bansuri was elected to the Lok Sabha on 2024 from New Delhi constituency.
Sushma Swaraj's sister Vandana Sharma is an associate professor of political science in a government college for girls in Haryana. Their brother Dr. Gulshan Sharma is an Ayurveda doctor based in Ambala.
