Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Wednesday that she has decided not to run for the upcoming Lok Sabha election. She mentioned that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had approached her to contest from either Tamil Nadu or Andhra Pradesh, but she declined the offer. "Party did ask me, after thinking over a week or days, I just went back to say ...may be not. Because my party president asked me, would you want to contest somewhere in the south-option is somewhere in South, Tamil Nadu or Andhra Pradesh", said Nirmala Sitharaman while speaking at a summit, as reported by the news agency ANI.
Sitharaman's reason for not contesting Lok Sabha polls
"But I don't have that kind of money to contest, I also have a problem because whether it is Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu, there is also going to be a question of various winnability criteria that they use, are you from this community or from that religion. I said no I don't think I am going to be able to do it. The party was graceful enough and I am very grateful to accept my argument, and I am not contesting", the Union Finance Minister said. When asked why she does not have enough funds to contest elections, Sitharaman said, "My salary, my earnings, and my savings are mine and not the Consolidated Fund of India."
Sitharaman's political career
Union Defence Minister Sitharaman has a notable political career. In 2014, she was elected as a Rajya Sabha member representing Andhra Pradesh. Her portfolio also includes serving as the Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, followed by Minister for Commerce and Industry with Independent Charge.
During her tenure as Defence Minister, Sitharaman was recognized for streamlining procurement processes within the defence sector. Notably, she established a Defence Planning Committee aimed at formulating an "action plan" to address the nation's security challenges effectively.
Sitharaman has been associated with the Bhartiya Janta Party since 2008 and has served as a national spokesperson for the party since 2010. Born on August 18, 1959, in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, she pursued her education at Seethalakshmi Ramasamy College, Tiruchirappalli, and obtained her MA in Economics from Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Lok Sabha elections 2024
The seven-phase Lok Sabha polls, the world’s biggest election exercise, will kick off on April 19 with the counting of votes set to take place on June 4 as Prime Minister Narendra Modi makes a bid for a third consecutive term in office.
Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said over 97 crore voters – 49.7 crore males and 47.1 crore females – were eligible to cast their vote in the polling process spread over 44 days and across 10.5 lakh polling booths. The elections will begin on April 19 followed by subsequent phases on April 26, May 7, May 13, May 20, May 25 and June 1.
(With inputs from ANI)
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