Raj Kumar Verka

Dr. Raj Kumar Verka
Dr. Raj Kumar Verka
MLA, Punjab
In office
2002–2007
Preceded byUjjagar Singh
Succeeded byDalbir Singh
ConstituencyVerka
In office
2012–2022
Preceded byOm Parkash Soni
Succeeded byJasbir Singh Sandhu
ConstituencyAmritsar West
Personal details
Born20 March 1963 (1963-03-20) (age 61)
Amritsar, Punjab, India
Political partyIndian National Congress (present)
ResidenceAmritsar

Dr. Raj Kumar Verka (born 20 March 1963) is an Indian politician and a member of Indian National Congress. He is a Member of Punjab Legislative Assembly (MLA) and represented Amritsar West as Indian National Congress member.[1][2] He was also vice chairman of National Commission for Scheduled Castes.[3]

Early life

He belongs to Valmiki Community.[4][5]

Political career

Verka first successfully contested Punjab Legislative Assembly from Verka constituency in 2002. from 2002 to 2004 he was chairman of Punjab Information technology corporation, further from 2004 to 2007 he was a Chief Parliamentary secretary.[6]

[7] In 2012, he was elected from Amritsar West.[1]

Verka was one of the 42 INC MLAs who submitted their resignation in protest of a decision of the Supreme Court of India ruling Punjab's termination of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) water canal unconstitutional.[8]

He was elected for his third term in 2017 from Amritsar West Assembly constituency.[9] He was the cabinet minister of the Congress party in the Punjab government from 2017 to 2022.[citation needed]

He became Chairman of Punjab State Warehousing Corporation in 2018 being an MLA who received Cabinet Minister Status. He also became Cabinet Minister in the Punjab Government as Minister of Social Justice, Medical Education and Research, and New and Sustainable Resource of Energy.

He joined Bhartiya Janata Party on 4 June 2022 along with Balbir Singh Sidhu, Gurpreet Singh Kangar, Sundar Sham Arora, and others at the party office in Chandigarh.[10]

Achievement & Awards

Dr. Rajkumar Verka was awarded the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa by the Governing body of Desh Bhagat University for his Exceptional Contribution in the field of Indian Political and Social work under the Faculty of Social Science.[11]

National Commission for Schedule Castes

He held the post of Vice-Chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes with the rank of Minister of State, Government of India for two terms.

References

  1. ^ a b "Statistical Report on General Election, 2012 to the Legislative Assembly of Punjab" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  2. ^ "Congress MLA writes to Rahul Gandhi to induct Navjot Singh Sidhu". Indian Express. 12 April 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  3. ^ "Tour Program". NCSC. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  4. ^ "Raj Kumar Myneta profile". Association of Democratic Rights. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  5. ^ Mohan, Vibhor (27 July 2019). "Objections raised as Raj Kumar Verka gets cabinet rank". The Times of India. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  6. ^ "Statistical Report on General Election, 2002 to the Legislative Assembly of Punjab" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  7. ^ "Statistical Report on General Election, 2007 to the Legislative Assembly of Punjab" (PDF). Election Commission of India. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  8. ^ PTI (11 November 2016). "SYL verdict: 42 Punjab Congress MLAs submit resignation". The Indian Express. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  9. ^ "AMRITSAR WEST Election Result 2017, Winner, AMRITSAR WEST MLA, Punjab". NDTV.com. Retrieved 12 July 2021.
  10. ^ "Tip of the iceberg: Captain Amarinder Singh as Congress logs 5 defections in Punjab".
  11. ^ "Special Convocation Ceremony at DBU". www.dbu.edu.in. Retrieved 5 June 2022.