Gajendra Singh Shekhawat
Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (born 3 October 1967) is an Indian politician who is serving as the 13th Minister of Culture and 11th Minister of Tourism since 2024.He is a member of parliament from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) representing Jodhpur in the Lok Sabha. He was the potential Chief Ministerial face of the BJP in Rajasthan's 2023 elections.
| Gajendra Singh Shekhawat | |
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| Union Minister of Culture, Bharat | |
| President Prime Minster Preceded by Union Minister of Jal Shakti Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare |
Droupadi Murmu Narendra Modi G. Kishan Reddy 30 May 2019 3 September 2017 |
| Personal details | |
| Born : 3 October 1967 (age 58) Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India Party : Bharatiya Janata Party | |
| Facebook Page | |
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Early life and education
Shekhawat was born in Jaisalmer in the Indian state of Rajasthan. His father, Shankar Singh Shekhawat, was a senior government officer in the public health department and travelled on frequent assignments across the state to several different schools. He received a Master of Arts and Master of philosophy from Jai Narain Vyas University, Jodhpur.
Political career
Shekhawat began his political career in student politics when in 1992 he was elected as president of the Student Union at JNVU University, gaining more votes than any other previous Akhil Bhartiya Vidhyarthi Parishad supporter. Shekhawat was appointed National General Secretary of the BJP Kisan Morcha, the farmers wing of the Bharatiya Janta Party. He was also a member of the Rajasthan State Executive of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
He was elected as a member of parliament to the 16th Lok Sabha in 2014, with the highest ever winning margin (4,10,051 votes) from the constituency of Jodhpur.[citation needed]
Known for his use of social media, Shekhawat is the most followed Indian politician on Quora. His Quora profile has more than 83,749 followers and his answers on the social media platform have been viewed 8 million times. He also served as the Chairperson of the Fellowship Committee, member of the All India Council of Sports (AICS) and member of the Standing Committee on Finance.
Union Minister
On 3 September 2017 he was appointed Union Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. He defeated Vaibhav Gehlot, the son of Ashok Gehlot, the Chief Minister of Rajasthan from Jodhpur by a margin of 2.74 lakh votes in 2019 Indian general elections. Shekhawat became the Minister of Jal Shakti on 31 May 2019.
Social works
Before entering electoral politics, Shekhawat held many positions in many forums and organisations; he was the co-convener of the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch, the economic wing of the Sangh Parivar and the General Secretary of Seema Jan Kalyan Samiti, an organisation dedicated to strengthening national security by developing border towns and villages. As General Secretary, he was instrumental in building a second line of defence that consisted of civilians residing near the border area of Rajasthan. He was also instrumental in furthering the impact of civil defence by setting up 40 schools and four hostels along the India-Pakistan border.
In October 2024, he launched the first coal gallery at the National Science Centre in New Delhi, India.
Positions Held
09-Jun-2024 - Union Cabinet Minister of Culture; and Minister of Tourism
09-Jun-2024 - Union Cabinet Minister of Culture; and Minister of Tourism
June 2024 - Elected to 18th Lok Sabha
30 May 2019 onwards - Union Cabinet Minister, Ministry of Jal Shakti
May, 2019 - Re-elected to 17th Lok Sabha (2nd term)
3 Sept. 2017 - 25 May 2019 - Union Minister of State, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
12 June 2017 - 25 May 2019 - Member, House Committee
12 Aug. 2016 - 25 May 2019 - Chairperson, Fellowship Committee, Lok Sabha Secretariat
27 Jul. 2016 - 25 May 2019 - Member, All India Council of Sports (AICS), Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, Govt. of India
11 May 2016 - 25 May 2019 - Member, Joint Committee on the Enforcement of Security Interest and Recovery of Debts Laws and Miscellaneous Provision (Amendment) Bill, 2016
1 May 2016 - 4 Sept. 2017 - Member, Committee on Estimates, Member- Governing Council , All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Jodhpur
Member- Consultative Committee, Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
1 Sept. 2014 - 4 Sept. 2017 - Member, Standing Committee on Finance
May, 2014 - Elected to 16th Lok Sabha
2012 onwards - Member, National Team of BJP MSI Cell , Member, BJP Pradesh Karyakarni (Rajasthan)
References
01. Loksabha "Members Bioprofile". Lok Sabha Secretariat.
02. "Who is Gajendra Singh Shekhawat?". by The Indian Express.
03. Report, TOI (4 September 2017). "Cabinet rejig: Meet Modi's formidable force in run-up to 2019 general elections". The Times of India.
04. "Constituencywise-All Candidates". Eciresults.nic.in. Archived from the original on 16 February 2014. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
05. "Cabinet reshuffle: Dedicated party veterans, ex-bureaucrats in Modi's chosen nine". The Times of India. PTI. 4 September 2017. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
06. Lok Sabha election: Two-term MP and greenhorn Rajputs clash in Jodhpur". The Economic Times. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 26 June 2024.
07. Report, TOI. "BJP Kisan Morcha names office bearers, says will work for farmers". PTI. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
08. Report, TOI. "On right track". PTI. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
09. Voice" Cabinet Minister Shekhawat unveiled the statue of late Mr Balwant Singh Bakhasar, a renowned intelligence persona who played an indomitable role in the 1971 Indo-Pak War, in Bakhasar's native village. Shekhawat's speech