Kolkata, May 17: Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee will become the country's 14th woman chief minister and the first in West Bengal when she is sworn in on Friday. Veteran Gandhian Sucheta Kripalani was India's first woman chief minister. She held the post in Uttar Pradesh from October, 1963 to March 1967.
Congress leader Nandini Satpathy was Orissa's chief minister from June, 1972 to March, 1974. Sashikala Kakodkar became Goa's chief minister from the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak party between August, 1973 and June, 1977 and again June, 1977 and April, 1979. Assam's first woman chief minister was Anwara Taimur from December, 1980 to June, 1981. Taimur was from the Congress. Her term ended when the state was placed under President's rule.
Widow of iconic MGR in Tamil Nadu Janaki Ramachandran became chief minister as an AIADMK leader for a short period - January seven to January 30, 1988. AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa was chief minister of Tamil Nadu twice during June 1991 and May 1996 and again from May 14 2001 to September 21, 2006.
Jayalalithaa became chief minister of Tamil Nadu for the third time on May 16, 2011 after her splendid success in the election, trouncing arch rival DMK of M Karunanidhi. BSP leader Mayawati of Uttar Pradesh has been ruling as chief minister for the third time.
She became chief minister in June 1995, then in March 1997 and later in May 2002.
Rajinder Kaur Bhattal of Congress was chief minister of Punjab from April 1996 to February 1997. Bihar's Rabri Devi took over as chief minister from her husband and RJD stalwart Lalu Prasad. Her first term as chief minister was in July 1997 and then from March 1999. Sushma Swaraj of the BJP was Delhi's first woman chief minister from October 1998 to December 2003. Congress veteran Sheila Dixit has remained three-time chief minister of Delhi.
Uma Bharati of the BJP took over as chief minister Madhya Pradesh in December 2003.
Rajasthan's first woman chief minister was Vasundhara Raje, a senior BJP leader, for one term from 2003. PTI
