Kejriwal and his Ministers

Posted on 16th Feb 2015 by mohit kumar

New Delhi, Feb 14 (IANS) The following is a brief profile of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his ministers:

Arvind Kejriwal (46): A mechanical engineer from the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur, Kejriwal has been involved for long in anti-corruption campaigns. He won the Ramon Magsaysay award, considered Asia's Nobel Prize, in 2006. He became a household name when he was a key aide to Gandhian Anna Hazare when the latter launched an anti-corruption movement in 2011. A former Indian Revenue Services officer, he formed the AAP in November 2012 and became Delhi's chief minister in December 2013 after leading it to a spectacular showing in its maiden election. He resigned in February 2014 after 49 days in power. He contested against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha election and lost. But he rebuilt the AAP and led it to a sweeping win in the Delhi assembly election Feb 10.

Manish Sisodia (43): A former journalist who turned an activist, Sisodia is widely seen as Kejriwal's right hand man. After Kejriwal decided not to hold any portfolio and instead oversee the AAP government and interact with people, Sisodia becomes the most powerful minister. He is expected to run the day-to-day affairs of the government while Kejriwal monitors the larger picture.

Gopal Rai (38): A former activist of the All India Students Association (AISA), the student wing of the CPI-ML, Gopal Rai joined the AAP and is now a member of its National Executive. He is partially paralyzed as he suffered a bullet would in his student days. He lost the 2013 Delhi election. Months ago, he had a verbal spat with former Indian Army chief V.K. Singh in the presence of Anna Hazare who asked Rai to leave Ralegaon Siddhi.

Asim Ahmed Khan (38): He defeated five-time legislator Shoaib Iqbal from Matia Mahal, a Muslim-dominated constituency in Old Delhi. According to the AAP web site, Khan has been a part of many social activities in the fields of education, health and culture.

Satyender Jain (49): He was the health minister in the 49-day Kejriwal government of 2013-14. The legislator from Shakur Basti is an architecture consultant. He quit his job with the Central Public Works Department to join the Anna Hazare movement. He is also a social activist.

Jitender Singh Tomar (48): He is an advocate by profession and a former Congressman who joined the AAP in 2013. He was defeated in the last Delhi election by the BJP candidate from Trinagar.

Sandeep Kumar (34): A software engineer by training and profession, he worked in Tata Consultancy Services previously. He later became a mentor to start up companies for friends and family. He also took part in Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement.

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