Rajiv Pratap Rudy Biography

About Rajiv Pratap Rudy

A Lok Sabha MP from the Saran constituency in Bihar, Rajiv Pratap Rudy is one of the most well-educated and suave leaders in Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is a man with multiple skills – a lecturer, a lawyer and a Jumbo Jet pilot rolled into one. Recently, Rudy has been inducted in the Union Cabinet as a minister of state by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and has been given charge of Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (Independent Charge), and Parliamentary Affairs. He is also the national general secretary of the BJP.

Early life of Rajiv Pratap Rudy

Born on March 30, 1962 in Chhapra, Bihar, Rudy completed his schooling from St. Michaels High School in Patna and then moved to Punjab University in Chandigrah for higher studies. After finishing his Bachelors (Hons) and then Masters Degrees in Economics, he became lecturer in the Magadh University in Bihar. Later, he also obtained a degree in Law (LLB).

His entry into politics was not pre-panned, it seems. It was during his Punjab University days that he got involved in student politics, but eventually became a lecturer by profession, prior to entering politics.

Later he also obtained the license to fly jumbo plane after due training. However, it was revealed to people a few years back when passengers of a Patna-to-Delhi IndiGo plane came to know that their flight was being piloted by a politician. Hearing this, first they were taken aback for a moment, but soon heaved a sigh of relief when it was revealed to them that Rudy was a trained pilot. It was in the year 2011 when he was hired by IndiGo Airlines as a co-pilot on honorary basis.

Rudy is married to Neelam Pratap and the couple has two daughters.

Political Career of Rajiv Pratap Rudy

Rudy started his political career in 1990 when he was elected as an MLA from Taraiya Assembly constituency in Bihar. He fought this election on a ticket from the Janata Dal. Later, he joined the BJP and was appointed as its National Vice President. He was elected to the 11th Lok Sabha in 1996 on BJP’s ticket. Once again he was elected to Lok Sabha in 1999. During the NDA Government led by Atal Behari Vajpayee, Rudy was Commerce and Industry Minister from 2001 to 2003 and then later he served as Civil Aviation Minister from 2003 to 2004 in the same government. In 2010, he was elected to the Rajya Sabha from Bihar and in the year 2014 he contested Lok Sabha elections from Saran in Bihar and won. His winning was hailed as his biggest political achievement as he had defeated no other than Rabri Devi, the former Chief Minister of Bihar.

His impressive political career has been marked by some controversies too. In 2004, Rudy had to face allegations that he skipped paying for his hotel stay in a hotel in Goa with his family and made the Airport Authority of India to pay the said bills. Similarly during his tenure as the Civil Aviation Minister, he had ordered inquiry into the cracks in windshields of Indian Airlines and Alliance Air airplanes. During this proves, he also asked for information from the respective departments on stay and travelling of pilots and cabin crew, besides the catering contracts in these Airlines.

Rudy has been an avid traveller and has been to several countries including Russia, Brazil, Germany, Italy, France, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Nepal, etc. He had visited Russia in 1985 to attend the International Youth Festival held in Moscow. He has been member to various parliamentary committees too. Just to name a few, he has served as member of Joint Parliamentary Committee on Wakf, Committee on Food Management in Parliament complex, Committee on Home Affairs and Parliamentary Forum on Global Warming and Climate change, among others.
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