Meira Kumar | 64 Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Meira Kumar
Meira Kumar, 64 Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment
Meira Kumar was one of the least visible UPA ministers. Daughter of the late Jagjivan Ram, she was largely ineffective in pursuing Dalit issues.
Her brief
Enactment of Reservation Act and “affirmative action” for reservation in the private sector.
The deliveries
The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007.
Reforms derailed
n The SC/ST (Reservations in Posts and Services) Bill, listed during the last Lok Sabha session, was stalled.
n She sought to give SC status to a child even if only the mother belonged to the SC category. But this proposal fell flat.
n She proposed amendments to the SC&ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act but it remained stuck in the files.
Opportunities blown
Even with the support she had from Dalit leaders, she failed to assert her leadership with the Reservation Act.
View from the outside
“The ministry lacked sincerity. There is no figure of how many BPL families have made it to APL.” —Sumitra Mahajan, chairperson of the committee on Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry
Is she asking for your vote?
She won by a margin of 42,954 from Sasaram, south Bihar.