Hema Malini, who is seeking her third term from Mathura, belongs to Tamil Nadu
Lucknow:
Uttar Pradesh has strong women leaders but, interestingly, majority of them do not belong to the state.
Sonia Gandhi
Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi leads the brigade of political talent imported from outside Uttar Pradesh. A native of Italy who has been living in New Delhi since she married former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, Mrs Gandhi made her political debut from Amethi in 1999 and then contested and won the Rae Bareli seat from 2004 to 2019.
Sonia Gandhi first campaigned in Amethi in 1984 when her husband Rajiv Gandhi made his political debut.
When Sonia Gandhi finally took a plunge into politics after the former Prime Minister’s death and she chose her family turf, Amethi.
Mayawati
Mayawati was born in Delhi but her political ‘karambhoomi’ became Uttar Pradesh when the first SP-BSP government came into existence in the state in 1993.
Circumstances propelled Mayawati into the Uttar Pradesh chief minister’s chair in 1995 and over the years, she emerged as a politician who cannot be ignored.
Hema Malini
Actor-turned-politician Hema Malini, who is seeking her third term from Mathura, belongs to Tamil Nadu and has spent most of her life in Mumbai.
She contested and won the 2014 and 2019 elections from Mathura. Hema Malini calls herself ‘Krishna ki gopi’ and claims to have a divine connection with Mathura.
Smriti Irani
Smriti Irani, who is seeking her second term from Amethi, originally belongs to Delhi.
After winning Amethi in 2019, she called herself ‘Amethi ki bitiya’. She has even built her home in Gauriganj in Amethi and is well-versed in local politics.
Maneka Gandhi
Maneka Gandhi, who originally belongs to Delhi, is the senior-most MP among these women, having won her first election in 1989 on a Janata Dal ticket. She later joined the BJP and has always chosen Uttar Pradesh to contest elections – first Pilibhit and then Sultanpur.
Jaya Prada
Jaya Prada, another actor-turned-politician, was born in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh but chose Uttar Pradesh for her political career even though she had earlier joined the TDP.
Jaya Prada successfully contested the Rampur Lok Sabha seat in 2004 and 2009 elections on a Samajwadi Party ticket. Later, she joined the BJP in 2019.
Dimple Yadav
Dimple Yadav, senior SP leader and wife of Akhilesh Yadav, originally belongs to Uttarakhand but made Uttar Pradesh her home after her marriage to Akhilesh Yadav.
Dimple Yadav began her career by contesting a bypoll from Firozabad in 2009 against Raj Babbar of the Congress. She was defeated in this election. She won the Kannauj seat in a 2012 bye-election. She won the Kannauj seat in 2014 but lost in 2019.
However, Dimple Yadav won the Mainpuri bye-election after the death of Mulayam Singh Yadav in 2022.
Even in the past, several women leaders from outside Uttar Pradesh contested polls from the state.
Former Lok Sabha Speaker, Meira Kumar, made her debut in politics when she won a bye-election from Bijnor in 1985. Meira Kumar, who is the daughter of late veteran politician Jagjivan Ram, was born in Bihar.
Former Delhi Chief MinisterSheila Dikshit won her first election from Kannauj in 1984. She was born in Kapurthala in Punjab.
Freedom fighter Sucheta Kripalani, India’s first woman Chief Minister who headed the Uttar Pradesh government, also belonged to Punjab but won the Assembly polls from Mehdawal in Sant Kabir Nagar.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
