Rahul Gandhi Biography
About Rahul Gandhi
Rahul Gandhi | |
|---|---|
| Constituency | AMETHI |
| DOB | 19 Jun 1970 |
| Place of Birth | New Delhi |
| Phone Number | 8004051011 |
| Email Id | amethi.inc@gmail.com |
| Address | 12, Tughlak Lane, New Delhi |
| Education | M.A. M.Phil from Trinity College, Cambridge in 1995 |
| Total Assets | Rs9,40,06,549 |
| Liabilities | Rs18,00,000 |
| Alma mater | University of Delhi, Harvard University, Rollins College, Trinity College, Cambridge |
| Profession before joining politics | After graduation, Rahul Gandhi worked at the Monitor Group, a management consulting firm, in London. In 2002 he was one of the directors of Mumbai-based technology outsourcing firm Backops Services Private Ltd. |
| Marital Status | Unmarried |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Political party | Indian National Congress |
| Relations | Nehru–Gandhi family |
| Parents | Rajiv Gandhi Sonia Gandhi |
| Important positions held |
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His great grandfather, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, was the first Prime Minister of independent India. His grandmother, Indira Gandhi, the first and only woman Prime Minister of India, was a very influential and powerful lady. His father, Rajiv Gandhi, was the President of Congress and also served as Prime Minister. His mother, Sonia Gandhi, is at present the President of the Indian National Congress. Rahul Gandhi is considered to be the new and young face of the party.
Rahul Gandhi's Personal background
Rahul Gandhi was born on 19 June, 1970 in Delhi. He is the elder of the two children of the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. His mother, Sonia Gandhi, originally hails from Italy and now holds an Indian citizenship. His younger sister, Priyanka Vadra, is married to Robert Vadra who is a businessman. Rahul Gandhi’s initial schooling was in St. Columba’s School in Delhi. Thereafter, from 1981 to 1983, he studied in The Doon School in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.| You may also like to read | |
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Rahul Gandhi informed the press in 2004 that he has a Spanish girlfriend Veronique Cartelli, who is an architect and lives in Venezuela.
Professional background of Rahul Gandhi
After his graduation, Rahul Gandhi worked for Monitor Group in London for three years, which is management guru Michael Porter’s consulting firm. After returning to India in late 2002, Rahul Gandhi became the director of a technology outsourcing firm, Backops Services Private Ltd. based in Mumbai. Rahul's Entry into PoliticsRahul Gandhi's Win from Amethi in 2014
Despite tough competition from Aam Aadmi Party's Kumar Vishwas and Bharatiya Janata Party's Smriti Irani, Congress Vice President and fifth-generation politician Rahul Gandhi won his seat at Amethi in Uttar Pradesh by a margin of 1,07,903 votes in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The Congress party, as a whole, suffered its worst ever defeat in that election. This win came in spite of attacks from the BJP's prime-ministerial candidate Narendra Modi that Rahul lacked leadership qualities and had "only entertainment value" besides the media's predictions that he stood no chance in the election.Rahul Gandhi's win in Amethi put him in a strong position in the political scene of India. His win, however, came as a surprise to his detractors who had pointed out the lack of development in Amethi since Rajiv Gandhi's time. The media had reported that Rahul Gandhi had not done anything for the constituency to better the health, education, roads and sanitary condition of the place. It may be said that the people have shown faith in the Nehru-Gandhi family who have been representing Amethi for over forty years. Rahul Gandhi himself has won from the constituency twice in his ten-year political career – first in 2004 parliamentary election and second in 2009 Uttar Pradesh legislative election.
Rahul Gandhi's political journey and achievements
- In 2004, he was elected to the Lok Sabha from the constituency of Amethi.
- Rahul Gandhi started accompanying his mother, Sonia Gandhi, to different public events and Congress party meetings.
- In 2006, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra managed the election campaigning for their mother Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli, which she won.
- Rahul Gandhi was a prominent party figure who campaigned in the 2007 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
- In September 2007, he became the General Secretary of the Indian Youth Congress and also of National Students' Union of India.
- In his effort to reform youth politics in November 2008, he conducted interviews at his residence in New Delhi to select at least 40 people to form the think-tank of the Indian Youth Congress (IYC).
- The Indian Youth Congress (IYC) and National Students' Union of India (NSUI), under his guidance, have seen a substantial increase in members from 2,00,000 to 25,00,000.
- Rahul Gandhi retained his seat in the constituency of Amethi in 2009 Lok Sabha elections. He was acknowledged as a contributor in the revival of Congress party in Uttar Pradesh where the party won 20 Lok Sabha seats out of 80. In six weeks he had travelled across the nation and spoken at 125 rallies.
- Rahul Gandhi was arrested on 11 May 2011 in Bhatta Parsaul village by the Uttar Pradesh police for supporting flustered farmers who were demanding more compensation against acquisition of their land for a highway project.
- During the 2012 Assembly elections, he campaigned in Uttar Pradesh for almost two months, holding 200 rallies. Congress won 28 seats in the state, which is six seats more compared with the 2007 elections. However, the party acquired fourth position in the state.
- Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Vadra travelled to Pakistan on a goodwill visit to watch the first cricket series between India and Pakistan in 14 years.
- On 19 January 2013, Rahul Gandhi was appointed the Congress Vice President in a party conclave of the All India Congress Committee in Jaipur. Officially, he is ranked second in the party after his mother, Sonia Gandhi, who is the party president.
- To everyone’s surprise, on 27 September 2013, Rahul Gandhi openly criticized Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his government for coming out with an ordinance to revoke the effect of the order passed by the Supreme Court of India which states that convicted criminals could not contest elections.
- Rahul Gandhi won from Amethi constituency in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. However, the Congress party suffered its biggest defeat that year.
- In 2016, the RSS filed a defamation suit against Rahul Gandhi for claiming that the former killed Mahatma Gandhi. As on 2 September, 2016, Rahul has said he stands by his remark and will fight his case in court.
Books on Rahul Gandhi
Rahul : The First Authoritative BiographyJatin Gandhi and Veenu Sandhu in 'Rahul: The First Authoritative Biography' gives insight into the Nehru-Gandhi family and explore the interesting relationship between modernity and dynasty. The authors take the readers into the life of Rahul Gandhi – his public moves, his trips across India to reach out to common man, his Youth Congress. It focuses on both, his achievements and his inabilities. The book, no doubt, brings to light how Gandhi’s actions will affect the lives of Indians.
Decoding Rahul Gandhi
Aarthi Ramachandran’s 'Decoding Rahul Gandhi' attempts to bring out the person behind the persona. The book is based on interviews conducted by Ramachandran with Rahul and people who are close to Gandhi both personally and politically. Readers get insights into who Rahul Gandhi is, what his aspirations and fears are and what motivates his actions. The book also reveals the reasons for the failure of some of his policies in the past.