Ajanta Neog

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Ajanta Neog
Neog in 2020
Cabinet Minister, Government of Assam
Assumed office
10 May 2021
Chief MinisterHimanta Biswa Sarma
Portfolios
  • Finance
  • Social Welfare (until June 2022)
  • Women and Child Development (from June 2022)
Preceded byHimanta Biswa Sarma (Finance)
Pramila Rani Brahma (Social Welfare)
In office
21 May 2006 – 24 May 2016
Chief MinisterTarun Gogoi
Portfolios
  • Social Welfare, Jails (until 2008)
  • Public Works Development (from 2008)
  • Urban Development and Housing (2011–2015)
  • Guwahati Development Department (2012–2016)
  • Planning and Development, Judicial, Legislative and Law (2015–2016)
Preceded byGautam Roy (SW, Jails)
Tarun Gogoi (PWD, GDD)
Dinesh Prasad Goala (UD&H)
Tanka Bahadur Rai (Planning, etc.)
Succeeded byAkon Bora (SW, Jails)
Parimal Suklabaidya (PWD)
Sumitra Patir (UD&H)
Himanta Biswa Sarma (Planning, etc.)
Member, Assam Legislative Assembly
Assumed office
2 May 2021
Preceded bySelf
ConstituencyGolaghat
In office
1996–2020
Preceded byAtul Bora
Personal details
Born1964
Guwahati, Assam, India
Political partyBharatiya Janata Party (since 2020)
Other political
affiliations		Indian National Congress (until 2020)
Spouse
​
(d. 1996)​
Children2 sons
Parent(s)Sasadhar Das (father)
Rebati Das (mother)
ResidenceDispur
Alma materGauhati University (M.A.), LL.B, LL.M
OccupationPolitician

Ajanta Neog (born 1964) is an Indian politician who is currently serving as the Minister of Finance and Women and Child Development in the Government of Assam since May 2021.[1] She is the first woman Finance Minister of Assam.[2] She has been representing the Golaghat Assembly seat consecutively for the past five terms since 2001.[3] She also holds the record for being the longest-serving female legislator of Assam.[4]

Currently, she is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party which she joined in December 2020.

Early life and education[edit]

Ajanta Neog was born in Guwahati to late Sasadhar Das and late Rebati Das. Her mother Rebati Das, was a former Member of the Assam Legislative Assembly representing Jalukbari constituency.[5] She completed MA, LLB and LLM from Gauhati University and is an alumna of Handique Girls College.[6] After completing her education, she practiced law as an advocate at Gauhati High Court for a few years.

Indian National Congress[edit]

She was first elected to the Assembly in 2001 after defeating her nearest rival by over 10000 votes.[7] She was again victorious in the subsequent election held in 2006. In the 2011 assembly elections she won by a huge margin of 46171 votes. Consecutively, she won the 2016 assembly elections despite a 'BJP Wave' in upper Assam where a vast majority of the Congress candidates were defeated. She held the position of Minister for Public Works Department (Roads and Building, National Highways), Urban Development and Housing,[8][9][10] and had been in the last three Cabinets.[11] She was also given the additional charge of Minister for Planning and Development, Judicial, Legislative, Pension & Public Grievance in 2015.[12] She was conferred with the Golaghat ratna award by the united chamber of commerce, Golaghat.[13]

During her tenure as the PWD minister, Assam achieved huge success in infrastructure development. Assam was adjudged the "Best Infrastructure Development State" in the big state category in the 13th States Conclave by India Today group held on 6 November 2015. Assam was adjudged the best State in Infrastructure Development because it had registered a 17 percent increase in the length of Pucca road from 2011 to 2013–14, whereas the National average for the same period was four percent.[14]

Bharatiya Janata Party[edit]

In December 2020, Ajanta Neog along with Rajdeep Goala (both incumbent legislators) joined the Bharatiya Janata Party after being expelled from Indian National Congress for their alleged "anti-party" activities.[15] She called her former party ‘vision less’ and disconnected from people while speaking to reporters. She also said that she is joining the BJP to protect the interest of the indigenous people of Assam from the ‘unholy’ alliance of the Congress Party and AIUDF.

She subsequently won the 2021 Assembly election from the Golaghat constituency on a BJP ticket defeating her nearest rival from the Congress party. With this victory, she became an MLA for the 5th consecutive term from Golaghat constituency.[1] She was inducted into the Himanta Biswa Sarma cabinet as the Finance Minister creating history by being the first woman to hold the finance portfolio in the state.

Personal life[edit]

Ajanta Neog was married to Karmashree Nagen Neog who was killed along with eight others by the outlawed United Liberation Front of Assam in 1996. Her husband was a former minister and belonged to the Chutia ethnic group. She has two sons.[16]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "ASSAM: FINAL LIST OF COUNCIL OF MINISTERS". Guwahati Times. 11 May 2021.
  2. ^ "Assam CM allots portfolios to ministers; keeps home, PWD, personnel with self". Hindustan Times. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 11 May 2021.
  3. ^ "Who's Who". 31 August 2021. Archived from the original on 31 August 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2022.
  4. ^ "Assam Gets Its First Woman Finance Minister as CM Himanta Gives Portfolio to 5-time MLA Ajanta Neog". www.news18.com. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Jalukbari Election Results 2016, Candidate list, Winner, Runner-up and Current MLAs". Elections in India. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  6. ^ "Platinum Jubilee - Handique Girls' College contents". Handique Girls' College. Retrieved 21 February 2022.
  7. ^ "Golaghat Elections and Results 2016, Candidate list, Current and Previous MLAs". www.elections.in. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  8. ^ "Smti. Ajanta Neog - Who's Who". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  9. ^ "Ajanta retains PWD, Nazrul gets health". 26 January 2015.
  10. ^ Talukdar, Sushanta (23 January 2015). "14-member new Assam Ministry sworn in". The Hindu.
  11. ^ "Gogoi allocates portfolios to new Assam ministers". 26 January 2015.
  12. ^ "Gogoi allocates portfolios to new Assam ministers". Firstpost. 26 January 2015. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  13. ^ "Minister Ajanta Neog Conferred with". eastern-today.com. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  14. ^ "Assam bags best Infrastructure Development State Award". indiatoday.intoday.in. Retrieved 29 April 2016.
  15. ^ "Former Congress leaders Ajanta Neog & Rajdeep Gowala joined BJP". Times of India. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
  16. ^ "Four-time MLA Ajanta Neog becomes the first woman Finance Minister of Assam". The Economic Times.
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