Smriti Irani

Smriti Irani
Smriti
Irani in 2023
Union Cabinet Minister, Government of India
In office
26 May 2014 – 11 June 2024
6 July 2022 – 11 June 2024Ministry of Minority Affairs
31 May 2019 – 11 June 2024Ministry of Women and Child Development
5 July 2016 – 7 July 2021Ministry of Textiles
18 July 2017 – 24 May 2018Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
26 May 2014 – 5 July 2016Ministry of Human Resource Development
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
In office
23 May 2019 – 4 June 2024
Preceded byRahul Gandhi
Succeeded byKishori Lal Sharma
ConstituencyAmethi, Uttar Pradesh
Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha
In office
19 August 2011 – 23 May 2019
Preceded byPravin Naik
Succeeded byJugalji Mathurji Thakor
ConstituencyGujarat
National President of the BJP Mahila Morcha
In office
24 June 2010 – 24 April 2013
Preceded byKiran Maheshwari
Succeeded bySaroj Pandey
Personal details
Born
Smriti Malhotra

(1976-03-23) 23 March 1976 (age 49)[1]
New Delhi, Delhi, India
Political partyBharatiya Janata Party
Spouse
Zubin Irani
(m. 2001)
Children3
Residence(s)Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Occupation
  • Politician
  • actress (former)

Smriti Zubin Irani (née Malhotra; born 23 March 1976) is an Indian politician, former actress, fashion model, and television producer. An eminent member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Smriti Irani has held various significant roles within the Indian Union Cabinet. Born and raised in New Delhi, India, Smriti comes from a diverse family background. Her paternal family includes Punjabi and Maharashtrian heritage, while her maternal family has a Bengali heritage.[2][3] Before entering politics, Smriti had a successful career in the entertainment industry.[4]

Smriti Irani joined as a normal BJP karyakarta in 2003 and since then has completed more than 22 years in the BJP. Her decision to join the BJP was inevitable, as she has always had a deep ideological connection with the party. With over three-generation family of party supporters, from her grandfather as a swayamsevak, and mother as a BJP booth activist, it highlights that her relationship with the party is longstanding, tested, and rooted in family tradition.

A prominent leader of Bharatiya Janata Party, she had been a member of Indian parliament from 2011 to 2024, serving in the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat from 2011 to 2019 and from 2019 to 2024 as a member of the Lok Sabha from the Amethi constituency in Uttar Pradesh. She was also the National President of the BJP Mahila Morcha (the party's women's wing) from 2010 to 2013. Apart from this, Smriti has been National Secretary (two terms), National-President Women's Wing and National Executive Member for five terms. She subsequently lost the constituency to long time Indian National Congress worker Kishori Lal Sharma in the 2024 elections.

In the 2019 elections, she gained the Amethi constituency by defeating opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, then-president of the Indian National Congress, whose family members had represented the constituency for the previous four decades. She is the only non-Gandhi female politician to have completed five years in Amethi constituency. She subsequently lost the constituency to Indian National Congress in the 2024 elections.

She is the founder of the Alliance for Global Good – Gender Equity and Equality, a World Economic Forum initiative aligned with BIMSTEC and G20,[5] focused on addressing social and economic disparities through gender-focused programs.[6] As a Strategic Advisor to the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), she represents the interests of 80 million small traders in India.[7] She also serves as an Advisory Board Member for the Women’s Collective Forum, dedicated to promoting gender equality and advancing women’s health, education, and entrepreneurship.[8] Additionally, she is the Vice-President of The Loomba Foundation, which supports widows and their children globally, regardless of race, gender, or religion.[9] She has also represented the Asia-Pacific Region at the 126th Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly.[10]

  1. ^ "Detailed Profile: Smt. Smriti tulsi Irani". India.gov.in. Archived from the original on 10 June 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
  2. ^ "Bengali, Marathi, Gujarati, English... multilingual Smriti charms MPs". 27 November 2014. Archived from the original on 17 July 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2025.
  3. ^ "India's multilingualism an asset, says Smriti Irani". The Economic Times. 24 February 2015. Retrieved 28 April 2025.
  4. ^ "The Smriti Irani journey". Rediff. 29 August 2005. Retrieved 28 April 2025.
  5. ^ "Equality for Prosperity". globalgoodalliance.in. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
  6. ^ NewsVoir (28 January 2025). "Smriti Irani Leads a Transformative Gender Equity Agenda at Davos 2025". Business Standard. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
  7. ^ "In the annual general meeting of CAIT, the decision to empower 300,000 women entrepreneurs by providing them positions from the national to the taluka level was unanimously passed". cait.in. 24 August 2024. Retrieved 22 April 2025.
  8. ^ "Smriti Irani calls for greater global cooperation to empower women". The Economic Times. PTI. 24 January 2025. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
  9. ^ "Delhi: Smriti Irani addresses launch of 'Her Skill, Her Future' initiative to empower 100,000 widows". ANI News. 11 January 2025. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
  10. ^ "Smriti Irani Bio". minorityaffairs.gov.in.

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