Thawar Chand Gehlot (born 18 May 1948) is an Indian

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who is the current and 13th

Governor of Karnataka The governor of Karnataka, formerly governor of Mysore, is the constitutional head of the Indian state of Karnataka. The governor is appointed by the president of India, and holds office at the president's pleasure. The governor is ''de jure'' ...

, being the first person serving as the

from

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh (; ; ) is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and the largest city is Indore, Indore. Other major cities includes Gwalior, Jabalpur, and Sagar, Madhya Pradesh, Sagar. Madhya Pradesh is the List of states and union te ...

. He assumed office of the Governor of Karnataka on 11 July 2021. He also served as the Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment in the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

from 2014 to 2021. He was also the Leader of the House in the upper house of Indian Parliament. He was a member of the Parliamentary Board and the Central Election Committee of the BJP.

Early life

Gehlot was born in a

Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...

family in the village of Rupeta in

Nagda Nagda () is an industrial town in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It lies in the administrative headquarters of the city of Ujjain, in the Malwa region of western Madhya Pradesh. It is situated on the bank of the Chamba ...

in the

Central India Agency The Central India Agency was created in 1854, by amalgamating the Western Malwa Agency with other smaller political offices which formerly reported to the Governor-General of India. The agency was overseen by a political agent who maintained ...

of the

Dominion of India The Dominion of India, officially the Union of India, * * was an independent dominion in the British Commonwealth of Nations existing between 15 August 1947 and 26 January 1950. Until its Indian independence movement, independence, India had be ...

, which is in present-day

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. He is a senior member of

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...

. He had assumed ministerial berth a number of times in the union government. He completed his Bachelor of Arts degree from

Vikram University Vikram University is located in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, India. The university was named after the ruler Vikramaditya. It was established in 1957. It was evaluated by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council and was awarded B++ gra ...

Ujjain Ujjain (, , old name Avantika, ) or Ujjayinī is a city in Ujjain district of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It is the fifth-largest city in Madhya Pradesh by population and is the administrative as well as religious centre of Ujjain ...

Career

He was a member of the

Rajya Sabha Rajya Sabha (Council of States) is the upper house of the Parliament of India and functions as the institutional representation of India’s federal units — the states and union territories.https://rajyasabha.nic.in/ It is a key component o ...

upper house An upper house is one of two Legislative chamber, chambers of a bicameralism, bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house. The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restricted p ...

Indian Parliament The Parliament of India (ISO: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Government of the Republic of India. It is a bicameral legislature composed of the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) and the Lok Sabha (House of the People). The President o ...

representing the state of

. He was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

by the Dr. B.R. Ambedkar University of Social Sciences. He formerly represented

Shajapur Shajapur is a town in Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh States and union territories of India, state in west-central India. It is the headquarters of Shajapur district. Geography Shajapur is located at . It has an average elevation of . The hig ...

in the lower house of Indian Parliament,

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 ...

from 1996 to 2009. He served as the Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, in Modi's 2nd cabinet. He is a member of the

(BJP) and was also the general secretary of the party. On 6 July 2021, Thawar Chand Gehlot was appointed the 13th

References

External links

Members of Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh – Parliament of India website

Business News Today: Read Latest Business news, India Business News Live, Share Market & Economy News

Official biographical sketch in Parliament of India website
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Gehlot, Thawar Chand 1949 births Living people Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Madhya Pradesh Governors of Karnataka Vikram University alumni Leaders of the Rajya Sabha Rajya Sabha members from Madhya Pradesh Lok Sabha members from Madhya Pradesh Members of the Cabinet of India India MPs 1996–1997 Politicians from Ujjain Narendra Modi ministry India MPs 1998–1999 India MPs 1999–2004 India MPs 2004–2009 Rajya Sabha members from the Bharatiya Janata Party Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Karnataka