Minister of Minority Affairs: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

Minister of Minority Affairs: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is an Indian Politician and a member of Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP).
Minister of Minority Affairs: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi
Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi is an Indian Politician and a member of Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP).

Minister of Minority Affairs (May 2019 – Present): Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

Date of Birth: Naqvi was born on October 15, 1957.

Place of Birth: He was born at Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh (UP).

Parents: His mother is Sakina Begum and his father is AH Naqvi.

Spouse: He is married to Seema Naqvi and they have a son. He married her on June 8, 1983.

Political Party: He is a member of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Education: Naqvi has studied BA (Hons) and completed postgraduation in Mass Communication

Career: He is an agriculturist, social activist and an early entrant in mass movements and politics. He has, however, written 3 books as well. His literary works include Syah in 1991, Danga in 1998, and Vaisali in 2008. In 1975, at the age of 17, Naqvi was incarcerated during the Emergency. He was jailed at the Naini Central Jail in Prayagraj for his political activities. As a student leader, he frequently took part in the activities of the Janata Party. In 1980, he took part in the Lok Sabha elections from the Ayodhya constituency as an independent candidate but was not successful in this endeavour. In the 1998 Lok Sabha elections, however, he was successful from Rampur fighting on a BJP ticket. It was at this time that he served as a Minister of State for the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, with Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the Prime Minister of India.

Throughout his career, he has been known for his forthright and strong political and social views. He has criticized Congress, the main political rival of the BJP, for what he thought were baseless campaigns to stop Indian Muslims from joining the BJP. He has held several important positions in BJP, including that of National General Secretary, spokesperson, and All India Vice President.

Political Milestones: On July 8, 2016, Naqvi became a Rajya Sabha MP (Member of Parliament) from Jharkhand. Earlier, he was elected the Rajya Sabha MP from UP from July 5, 2010, to July 4, 2016. From May 26, 2014, to September 3, 2017, he served as the Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs. From May 26, 2014, to July 12, 2016, he also served as the Minister of State for Minority Affairs. From July 12, 2016, to September 3, 2017, he served as the Minister of State for Minority Affairs on independent charge. He ascended to this post after his predecessor Najma Heptulla resigned from the said post.

On September 3, 2017, he became the Union Minister of Minority Affairs in Modi 1.0. He was sworn in again on this position on May 30, 2019, in Modi 2.0 government.

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