Biography of Uma Bharati
Uma Ragini Bharti was born on May 3, 1959 in Tikamgarh, Madhya Pradesh, India,, is an Indian politician. She was born in Tikamgarh District, Madhya Pradesh and from a very young age, started holding discourses on Indian Epics.Her father was an atheist. Raised under the care of the late Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia of Gwalior, Uma Bharati, along with Sadhvi Ritambhara, played a prominent part in the Ayodhya Ram Janmabhoomi Movement. Her signature slogan during the movement was “Dear Ram we will come, and build temple at the place”.
At a young age, she became involved with the Bharatiya Janata Party. She contested her first Parliamentary elections in 1984, but lost. In 1989, she successfully contested the Khajurao seat, and retained it in elections conducted in 1991, 1996 and 1998. In 1999, she switched over and won the Bhopal seat. In the Vajpayee Administration, she held various state-level portfolios of Human Resource Development, Tourism, Youth Affairs & Sports, and finally Coal & Mines.
In the 2003 Assembly polls, she led the BJP to a three fourths majority in Madhya Pradesh. She defeated her Congress opponent from the Malehra seat with a 25% margin.
Uma Bharati resigned from the post of Chief Minister in August 2004, when an arrest warrant was issued against her regarding the 1994 Hubli riot case.
In November 2004, Uma Bharti was suspended from the Bharatiya Janata Party because of her criticism of Lal Krishna Advani. The suspension was lifted and in May 2005, she was appointed a member of the party’s national executive. Later that year, she was expelled from the party for opposing the appointment of Shivraj Singh Chauhan as the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh. She had the sympathy of various BJP leaders, such as Madan Lal Khurana and Sangh Priya Gautam, but was unable to capitalise on it. She drew large crowds during a Ram Roti Yatra and campaigns at various by-elections, and she established a new Hindu-oriented party called the Bharatiya Janshakti Party but both she and the party were unsuccessful in their efforts to be elected.
A section of the RSS, as well as some within the BJP, attempted to bring her back into the BJP fold but neither she nor opponents such as Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj favoured the sentiment. However, she did agree to withdraw her candidates for the 2007 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections at the request of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad chief, Ashok Singhal.
She was re-inducted in the BJP on 7 June 2011. She was tasked with reviving the party in Uttar Pradesh, ahead of the assembly polls in 2012.
In the March 2012 assembly elections, Bharti won the Charkhari constituency, in Mahoba District.
On 25 July 2007, Bharti began a week-days fast protesting over the Sethusamudram Shipping Canal Project saying that the bridge be saved.
In late November 2011, when the Government of India decided to allow 51% FDI in multi-brand retail and 100% in single brand retail, Uma Bharti threatened Walmart with arson should they enter the Indian market.