Rani ''Rani'' () is a female title, equivalent to queen, for royal or princely rulers in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. It translates to 'queen' in English. It is also a Sanskrit Hindu feminine given name. The term applies equally to a ...

Chitralekha Bhonsle (26 February 1941 – 16 August 2015) was a political and social worker and a member of parliament elected from the

Ramtek Ramtek is a city and municipal council in Nagpur district of Maharashtra, India. Religious significance Ramtek hosts a historic temple of Rama. It is believed that Ramtek was the place where Rama, the Hindu god, rested while he was in exile, ...

constituency in the Indian state of

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

being an

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

candidate.

Early life

Bhonsle was born on 26 February 1941 in

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...

in the Indian state of

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

. She married Tejsingrao Bhonsle on 25 December 1959 and has two sons, Laxmansingh and Mansingh as well as three daughters, Lalitaraje, Menkaraje and Ketkiraje.

Education & interests

Rani completed her

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

from Sahajirao Gaikwad College,

M.S. University Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, formerly Baroda College, is a public university in the city of Vadodara, Gujarat, India. Originally established as a college in 1881, it became a public university on April 30, 1949 and was renamed after ...

, Baroda (Gujarat). Her interests include painting and reading. She is also a Chairperson of the District Volleyball Association, Nagpur.

Career

Rani was elected to the 12th

Lok Sabha The Lok Sabha, also known as the House of the People, is the lower house of Parliament of India which is Bicameralism, bicameral, where the upper house is Rajya Sabha. Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by a ...

in 1998. During 1998–99, she was a Member on the Consultative Committee, Ministry of Coal.

References

1941 births 2015 deaths Women in Maharashtra politics India MPs 1998–1999 People from Nagpur district Articles created or expanded during Women's History Month (India) - 2014 Marathi politicians Lok Sabha members from Maharashtra 20th-century Indian women politicians Indian National Congress politicians from Maharashtra Women members of the Lok Sabha {{Maharashtra-INC-politician-stub