Robert Vadra was born to Rajendra and Maureen Vadra on 18 April 1969. His father's family is of Punjabi descent, originally from Sialkot in present-day Pakistani Punjab, settled in Moradabad district, Uttar Pradesh.[3] Rajendra's father moved from West Punjab to India at the time of partition.[4] His mother Maureen (née McDonagh) is of Anglo Indian origin, with roots stretching back to Scotland. Rajendra was a resident of Civil Lines, Moradabad and ran a diamond trading along with brass and wood handicrafts business.[citation needed] Rajendra Vadra has only completed his high school education.[5]
Robert Vadra's brother Richard died by suicide and his sister Michelle died in a car accident in 2001.[6][7] His father was found dead on April 3, 2009 in City Inn, a guest house in the Yusuf Sarai area of Delhi.
Politics
In January 2002, Vadra issued a notice in print newspaper distancing himself from his father and brother as they were misusing his relationship with the Nehru–Gandhi family to make money while promising jobs and other favours.[8] Following this, Sonia Gandhi, the then Congress president also issued a notice to all Congress CMs, state unit heads and senior party members to stay away from Vadra and his family.[9]
Until 2012, while Vadra was mostly in the background, he became a target for several opposition parties after the 2012 anti-corruption movement, India against corruption made allegations against him.[10] These allegations got further politicization after several instances of Congress party spokespersons defending allegations on Vadra, stating he was a soft target.[11]
While Vadra is not into INC active politics he has been actively campaigning for his brother-in-law Rahul Gandhi and mother-in-law Sonia Gandhi. In the Lok Sabha elections of 2019, he campaigned actively across India for several candidates.[12] Recently on his 50th birthday, when asked about his intent to join active politics, Vadra stated it would happen 2–3 years later.[13] He mulled a run in the 2024 Indian general election, but did not file nomination.[14]
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