Ram Naik

Ram Naik
24th Governor of Uttar Pradesh
Assumed office
22 July 2014
Preceded by Aziz Qureshi
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
In office
1989–2004
Preceded by Anoopchand Shah
Succeeded by Govinda Ahuja
Constituency Mumbai North
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas
In office
1999–2004
Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Succeeded by Mani Shankar Aiyar
Personal details
Born (1934-04-16) 16 April 1934
Atpadi, Bombay Presidency, British India
Nationality Indian
Political party Bharatiya Janata Party
Spouse(s) Kunda Naik
Children 2 daughters
Profession Politician[1]
Website www.ramnaik.com

Ram Naik (born 16 April 1934) is a veteran Indian politician from the BJP,[2] currently the 24th Governor of Uttar Pradesh[3][4]

Political career

Ram Naik was a member of the 13th Lok Sabha and was Minister of Oil and Natural Gas in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee cabinet (1999-2004). He was instrumental in introducing Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme. He was the BJP candidate for elections to the 14th Lok Sabha representing Mumbai North, but lost to famous Bollywood actor Govinda, a INC candidate from Virar.

A Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh volunteer since childhood,[5] he holds a law degree.[6] He started his political career with the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1964 and was involved in organizing a group of rail commuters in Mumbai.[3] He represented Borivli in the state assembly in 1978 and was re-elected twice,[6] before becoming Minister of State for Railways in 1998, when he was influential in forming the Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation.

In 2004 he published a statement in which he demanded apology from the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and chairwoman Sonia Gandhi for removal of quotes from statues dedicated to the Indian revolutionaries, such as Subhas Chandra Bose, Madan Lal Dhingra, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Bhagat Singh, and Bahadur Shah Zafar.[7]

Ram Naik announced in September 2013 that he will not contest the 2014 Lok Sabha Polls.[8] On 14 July 2014 he was named as the Governor of Uttar Pradesh.[4]

Controversies

Within a few months of his being appointed as governor, he stated that "The Ram Temple should be built as soon as possible, this is what the people of this country want and their wishes should be fulfilled."[9] The theme was immediately backed up by Hindutva groups.[10]

Subsequently, his Hindutva remarks seems to have been reined in[11][12] by Narendra Modi.

He was born in Atpadi, in Sangli district of Maharashtra state. He married Kunda Naik on 17 May 1960 and has two daughters.

Positions held

  • 1969-1977 - Organising Secretary, Bharatiya Jan Sangh, Mumbai
  • 1977-78 - General Secretary, Janata Party, Mumbai
  • 1978-1989 - Member, Legislative Assembly of Maharashtra (3 terms)
  • 1979-1980 - President, Janata Party, Mumbai
  • 1980-1986 - President, BJP, Mumbai
  • 1986-1989 - Vice President, BJP, Maharashtra
  • 1989 - Elected to 9th Lok Sabha
  • 1991 - Elected to 10th Lok Sabha
  • 1999 - Elected to 13th Lok Sabha
  • 1999-2004 - Union Cabinet Minister, Petroleum and Natural Gas
  • since 2004 - President, All India Disciplinary Committee of BJP
  • 2014- Governor of Uttar Pradesh

References

  1. ↑ "Ram Naik to be sworn-in as UP Governor on July 22". Timesofindia Journal. PTI. 18 July 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  2. ↑ "BJP veteran Ram Naik to take oath as UP Governor on 22nd July". News18 India. 17 July 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  3. 1 2 "Current Governor". Upgovernor.gov.in. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  4. 1 2 "New Governors of UP, Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat and Nagaland named". News.biharprabha.com. IANS. 14 July 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  5. ↑ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 October 2017. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  7. ↑ "A statement circulated by Shri Ram Naik, BJP leader in a Press Conference held in New Delhi" (Press release). 3 September 2004. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  8. ↑ "Former Petroleum Minister Ram Naik not to contest LS elections". Zeenews.india.com. PTI. 25 September 2013. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  9. ↑ Deepshikha Ghosh (12 December 2014). "'Ram Temple the Wish of Indians,' Says Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik". NDTV. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  10. ↑ "News18.com: CNN-News18 Breaking News India, Latest News Headlines, Live News Updates". News18 India. 12 December 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  11. ↑ Piyush Srivastava (4 January 2015). "UP Governor Ram Naik buckles under Narendra Modi pressure". India Today. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
  12. ↑ Saroj Nagi (16 December 2014). "Monkey on Modi's back: Why he can't shrug off the Hindutva elements". The First Post. Retrieved 20 July 2018.
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