Venkaiah Naidu

In this Telugu name, the surname is Muppavarapu.

M. Venkaiah Naidu
Official portrait, 2017
13th Vice President of India
In office
11 August 2017 – 11 August 2022[1]
President
Prime MinisterNarendra Modi
Preceded byMohammad Hamid Ansari
Succeeded byJagdeep Dhankhar
Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs
In office
6 July 2017 – 17 July 2017
Prime MinisterNarendra Modi
Preceded byGirija Vyas
Succeeded byNarendra Singh Tomar
Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting
In office
5 July 2016 – 17 July 2017
Prime MinisterNarendra Modi
Preceded byArun Jaitley
Succeeded bySmriti Irani
Union Minister of Urban Development, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation
In office
26 May 2014 – 6 July 2017
Prime MinisterNarendra Modi
Preceded byKamal Nath
Succeeded byNarendra Singh Tomar
Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
In office
26 May 2014 – 5 July 2016
Prime MinisterNarendra Modi
Preceded byKamal Nath
Succeeded byAnanth Kumar
7th National President of Bharatiya Janata Party
In office
1 July 2002 – 5 October 2004
Preceded byJana Krishnamurthi
Succeeded byL. K. Advani
Union Minister for Rural Development
In office
30 September 2000 – 30 June 2002
Prime MinisterAtal Bihari Vajpayee
Preceded bySunder Lal Patwa
Succeeded byKashiram Rana
Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha
In office
5 July 2016 – 10 August 2017
Preceded byAnand Sharma
Succeeded byAlphons Kannanthanam
ConstituencyRajasthan
In office
27 March 1998 – 5 July 2016
Preceded byH. D. Deve Gowda
Succeeded byNirmala Sitharaman
ConstituencyKarnataka
3rd President of the
Bharatiya Janata Party, Andhra Pradesh
In office
1988–1993
National President
Preceded byBangaru Laxman
Succeeded byV. Rama Rao
Member of Legislative Assembly
Andhra Pradesh
In office
1978–1985
Preceded byPonneboyina Chenchuramaiah
Succeeded byMekapati Rajamohan Reddy
Constituency Udayagiri
Personal details
Born
Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu

(1949-07-01) 1 July 1949 (age 75)
Chavatapalem, Madras Province, Dominion of India (present-day Andhra Pradesh, India)
Political partyBharatiya Janata Party
Spouse
​
(m. 1970)​
Children2
Residence(s)1 Tyagaraja Marg, New Delhi[2]
29, Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad[3]
Alma materAndhra University (LLB)
AwardsPadma Vibhushan (2024)
Signature

Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu (born 1 July 1949) is an Indian politician who served as the 13th vice president of India from 2017 to 2022.[4][5] He has also served as the minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Urban Development and Information and Broadcasting in the Modi Cabinet.[6]

Naidu has also served as the national president of Bharatiya Janata Party from 2002 to 2004.[7] Earlier, he was the Union Cabinet Minister for Rural Development in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.[8][9] He took the oath as the vice president of India and the chairman of the Rajya Sabha (ex-officio as the Vice President) on 11 August 2017.[10] In 2024, The Government of India honoured him with Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award.[11][12]

Early life

Venkaiah Naidu was born on 1 July 1949 at Chavatapalem village (near Venkatachalam) in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh, to Rangaiah Naidu and Ramanamma.[13][14] He completed his schooling from Zilla Parshad High School, Bucchireddy Palem (Nellore), and pursued his bachelor's degree in politics and diplomatic studies at V. R. College, Nellore. Later, he acquired a bachelor's degree in law with specialisation in international law from Andhra University College of Law, Visakhapatnam.[15][16] He was a swayamsevak in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and joined ABVP during his college days. He was elected as the president of the students' union of colleges affiliated with the Andhra University. He came into the spotlight for his prominent role in the Jai Andhra Movement of 1972. While Kakani Venkata Ratnam led the movement from Vijayawada, Naidu took active part in the agitation in Nellore, until it was called off a year later.

In 1974, he became the convener of Jayaprakash Narayan Chhatra Sangharsh Samiti of Andhra Pradesh. He took to the streets in protest against the Emergency and was imprisoned. From 1977 to 1980, he was president of its youth wing.

Political career

Venkaiah Naidu taking charge as the Union Minister for Urban Development in New Delhi on 28 May 2014

Both as a student leader and political figure, Naidu gained prominence as an orator who championed the cause of the farmers and the development of backward areas. His oratory skills and political activism propelled his political career, and he was elected as an MLA to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly twice from Udaygiri constituency in Nellore district in 1978 and 1983. He rose to become one of the most popular leaders of the BJP in Andhra Pradesh.[17]

After serving in various organisational posts of the BJP at the state and national level, he was elected as a member of the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka in 1998.[18] He was re-elected twice, in 2004 and 2010, from Karnataka.[19][20] He served as the party spokesperson from 1996 to 2000, bringing to the job his panache for quirky alliterations and similes. Unlike most politicians from southern India, Naidu made an effort to master Hindi, going on to address public rallies in northern India.[21]

After the NDA victory in the 1999 general elections, he became the Union Cabinet Minister for Rural Development in the government headed by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.[22] He was known for aggressively pushing for reforms in rural development and for the many schemes introduced during this period such as the 'Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana'.[23][24][25]

President of BJP (2002–04)

Naidu succeeded Jana Krishnamurthi as the National President of the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2003.[26] On 28 January 2004, he was elected unopposed for a full three-year term.[27] After the defeat of the BJP-led NDA in the 2004 general elections, he resigned from his post on 18 October 2004 and was succeeded by L. K. Advani.[28] However, he remained at the forefront of the BJP as one of its senior vice-presidents and an important campaigner. Naidu raised the "Special Status to Andhra Pradesh" issue in Rajya Sabha (as opposition member in February 2014) and demanded special category state status to Andhra Pradesh. The Prime Minister agreed to it, though it was not included in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.

Minister of Urban Affairs

Venkaiah Naidu taking charge as the Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs in New Delhi on 28 May 2014

Following the victory of the BJP in the 2014 general elections, he was sworn in as the Minister for Urban Development and Parliamentary Affairs on 26 May 2014.[29]

Naidu is also involved with the Swarna Bharat Trust, a social service organisation founded by him in Nellore.[30] The trust runs a school for poor, orphaned and special-needs children and imparts self-employment training programsme, especially for women and youth.

He was nominated by the BJP on 29 May 2016 for the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan and was elected.

Vice Presidency (2017–2022)

Swearing of Vice President-elect Venkaiah Naidu at Rashtrapati Bhavan Durbar Hall, 11 August 2017
The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu assuming office at the Vice President Secretariat, in New Delhi on 11 August 2017

On 5 July 2016, he concurrently served as Minister of Information and Broadcasting. A year later, he resigned from both offices to contest the 2017 vice presidential election. He won the election to become India's 13th Vice President.[31] He obtained 516 votes against UPA candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi, who received 244 votes. As his tenure ended, Naidu decided to move back to Hyderabad with his family and declared that he will resume his career in the service of the nation.[32] He was succeeded by Jagdeep Dhankhar on 11 August 2022.

Positions held

Awards and honours

Naidu being felicitated with Padma Vibhushan by President Murmu

State honours

Ribbon Decoration Country Date Note Ref.
Order of the Green Crescent  Comoros 3 August 2019 Commander, the highest civilian honour of the Comoros. [34]
Padma Vibhushan  India 2024 The second-highest civilian honour of India. [35]

Honorary degrees

References

  1. ^ "People will keep calling Venkaiah Naidu for something or other, says PM Modi". The Hindu. 8 August 2022. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  2. ^ "'It is Tyagaraja Marg, not Tyag Raj Marg': Naidu to mend new home address". Tribune. 9 August 2022. Archived from the original on 10 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  3. ^ "Traffic curbs: Venkaiah Naidu's visit". The Hindu. 29 July 2022. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  4. ^ Naidu, M Venkaiah (11 August 2020). "An emotionally integrated India offers the best defence against both internal and external threats and challenges". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2020.
  5. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu Vice President". Patrika.[dead link‍]
  6. ^ PTI (25 June 2014). "Venkaiah Naidu, BJP's south Indian face gets second stint in government". Indian Express. Archived from the original on 3 July 2014. Retrieved 25 June 2014.
  7. ^ "Naidu's journey from pasting party posters to being Vice President". Rediff. PTI. 5 August 2017. Archived from the original on 8 June 2022. Retrieved 12 August 2022.
  8. ^ "BJP wins all seats from Rajasthan - the Hindu". The Hindu. 11 June 2016. Archived from the original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  9. ^ "Cabinet reshuffle: Portfolios of Modi's ministers". 5 July 2016. Archived from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2016.
  10. ^ PTI (11 August 2017). "Venkaiah Naidu as vice president, Rajya Sabha chairman a tribute to democracy: Modi". Livemint. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  11. ^ "Padma Awards 2024: Former VP Venkaiah Naidu, actor Chiranjeevi, dancer Vyjayanthimala honoured with Padma Vibhushan". The Times of India. 25 January 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Padma Awardees List 2024" (PDF). Padma Awards. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2024.
  13. ^ "Profile - Venkaiah Naidu". vicepresidentofindia.nic.in. Archived from the original on 19 July 2019. Retrieved 7 June 2024. Date of Birth|1 July 1949
  14. ^ "Elections in India". Archived from the original on 1 May 2019. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  15. ^ "Biography". M.Venkaiah Naidu Personal website.[permanent dead link‍]
  16. ^ Layak, Suman (10 July 2016), "Cabinet reshuffle: Modi government's got talent but is it being fully utilised?", The Economic Times, archived from the original on 13 July 2016, retrieved 13 July 2016
  17. ^ Krishna Rao, V M (18 July 2017). "Venkaiah Naidu: A true friend of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  18. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu files papers for Rajya Sabha". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  19. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu among 10 elected to Rajya Sabha". The Hindu. 29 June 2004. Archived from the original on 4 March 2006. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  20. ^ "Rajya Sabha elections: Mallya, Venkaiah, Paswan, Rudy win". NDTV. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  21. ^ "Apart from mother tongue, it is essential to learn Hindi: Venkaiah". The Hindu. 9 September 2021. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  22. ^ "Party man Venkaiah Naidu makes debut in government". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  23. ^ "Dreams of a novice". India Today. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  24. ^ "PRADHAN MANTRI GRAM SADAK YOJANA : A BOON FOR RURAL INDIA". PIB news. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  25. ^ "Milking Naidu style". India Today. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  26. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu takes over as new BJP chief". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  27. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu elected BJP chief again". The Hindu. 29 January 2004. Archived from the original on 15 April 2005. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  28. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu quits; Advani is BJP chief". The Hindu. 19 October 2004. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 22 May 2014.
  29. ^ "Venkaiah Naidu takes charge as Urban Development minister". The Hans India. 28 May 2014. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  30. ^ "Swarna Bharat Trust to Strive for Progress of Women, Rural Folk". The New Indian Express. 11 January 2016. Archived from the original on 17 June 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  31. ^ "M Venkaiah Naidu Is India's Next Vice President". 5 August 2017. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 5 August 2017.
  32. ^ "Will Be "On The Move": Venkaiah Naidu As Vice-President Tenure Ends". NDTV. PTI. 10 August 2022. Archived from the original on 11 August 2022. Retrieved 11 August 2022.
  33. ^ Samdani, M. N. (27 May 2014). "Venkaiah Naidu: One who kept most leaders happy | Hyderabad News - Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 20 February 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  34. ^ "Voici qu'il faut savoir des accords signes entre les Comores et l'Inde". Comoros-Infos. 11 October 2019. Archived from the original on 12 October 2019. Retrieved 13 October 2019.
  35. ^ "Padma Awardees List 2024" (PDF). Padma Awards. 25 January 2024. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly
Preceded by Member of the Legislative Assembly for Udayagiri
1978–1985 		Succeeded by
Rajya Sabha
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Karnataka
1998–2016 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Rajasthan
2016–2017 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Rural Development
2000–2002 		Vacant
Title next held by
Kashiram Rana
Preceded by Minister of Parliamentary Affairs
2014–2016 		Succeeded by
Minister of Urban Development
2014–2017 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation
2014–2017
Preceded by Minister of Information and Broadcasting
2016–2017 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Vice President of India
2017–2022 		Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by President of the Bharatiya Janata Party
2002–2004 		Succeeded by
Preceded by National Democratic Alliance nominee for Vice President of India
2017 		Succeeded by