Jagdish Thakor

Jagdish Thakor
President of Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee
In office
6 December 2021 (2021-12-06)[1] – 9 June 2023 (2023-06-09)
Preceded byAmit Chavda
Succeeded byShaktisinh Gohil
Member of the Indian Parliament
for Patan
In office
2009–2014
Preceded byMahesh Kanodia
Succeeded byLiladharbhai Vaghela
Assembly Member
for Dahegam
In office
2002–2009
Preceded byGabhaji Thakor
Succeeded byKalyan Chauhan
Personal details
Born (1957-07-01) 1 July 1957 (age 67)
Ahmedabad, Bombay State, India
Political partyIndian National Congress
SpouseShradaben
Children2 sons and 3 daughters[2]
Websitehttp://jagdishthakor.com/
As of November, 2021
Source: [1]

Jagdish Thakor (born 1 July 1957) is an Indian National Congress politician from Gujarat, India.[3] He was the member of 15th Lok Sabha of India.[4] He represented the Patan constituency of Gujarat.[5] Thakor belongs to the Koli community of Gujarat.[6][7]

Political career

Thakor began his political career as a student leader in 1973 and won his first Assembly election in 2002.[8]

Member of Legislative Assembly (2002-2012)

He was elected as MLA from Dahegam in 2002 and 2007. Between 2007-2008 he was the Chief Whip, Congress, Gujarat Legislative Assembly.

Member of Parliament (2009-2014)

He was MP in the 15th Lok Sabha from Patan Lok Sabha constituency between 2009 and 2014,[9] and lost his seat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.[10]

On 3 December 2021, Thakor was appointed Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee president.[11]

2022 Gujarat Legislative Assembly Election

In December 2021, the Indian National Congress held a mock assembly in Rajkot, to highlight the plight of the youth for jobs. Thakor slammed the government saying "In Gujarat, 11 question papers were leaked. 25 lakh youth applied for government jobs. Despite having lost confidence in the government, 10 to 12 lakh of them are still applying for jobs and those eligible are not getting them." He also added that jobs were not going to the average youth, and that the government was giving jobs to BJP functionaries.[12]

In April 2022, Jignesh Mevani, Gujarat Congress MLA from Vadgam was arrested by Assam Police in Palanpur, Jagdish Thakor hit out at the BJP, saying that he was arrested for tweeting against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a Hindu-nationalist parent organization of the BJP.[13]

In July 2022, Thakor along with several Gujarat Congress leaders workers staged a sit-in in Lal Darwaja, Ahmedabad for 2 hours to protest against the summoning of Sonia Gandhi by the Enforcement Directorate, which they alleged was working with the BJP-led central government to intimidate opposition leaders. Thakor said that this was vindictive politics, "Though Soniaji is unwell, she is cooperating in the probe. The BJP is harassing opposition leaders to distract people from real issues, such as price rise." The Congress also staged a protest at Koba, Gandhinagar demanding Gujarat Subordinate Service Selection Board (GSSSB) chairman and BJP leader Asit Vora to resign.[14]

In July 2022, after the Gujarat toxic liquor deaths, Thakor slammed the BJP, saying that it is maligning the image of Gujarat, and also failing to implement the prohibition in Gujarat. "The sarpanch of Rojid (Dharmendra Patel, a Congress leader) had repeatedly alerted the police in the past regarding illicit sale of spurious liquor in his village yet no action was taken. The BJP and police are running a partnership with the bootleggers in Gujarat." Jagdish Thakor said. He also criticized the BJP for wasting taxpayers money, and for not meeting the victims of the tragedy. He said that unemployment was being neglected, and said that the government was giving booze and drugs to the youth instead of jobs.[15]

In September 2022, Thakor and the Congress party gave a bandh call in Gujarat, as a symbolic protest against inflation and unemployment. He alleged that 4.5 lakh youth were unemployed out of which 4.3 lakh were qualified, even though 4.5 lakh government posts were vacant in the state. He also said that 27000 posts for teachers are open, that there were hundreds of libraries without a librarian. Talking about inflation, Thakor said that prices of basic commodities are very high and that it had a cascading effect on the average citizen's life. He instructed Congress workers to ensure that emergency services were not stopped because of the bandh call.[16]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Jagdish Thakor takes over as Gujarat Congress president". The Hindu. 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  2. ^ "Jagdish Thakor". nocorruption.in. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  3. ^ Lobo, Lancy (1995). The Thakors of North Gujarat: A Caste in the Village and the Region. Hindustan Publishing Corporation. ISBN 978-81-7075-035-2.
  4. ^ "Patan Parliamentary Constituency Election and Results Update". elections.in. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  5. ^ jagdishthakor.com/Profile%20Page.aspx
  6. ^ "Gujarat Congress leaders want veteran as state unit president". Lokmat English. IANS. 27 October 2021. Retrieved 9 December 2021.
  7. ^ "Challenges before Congress in Gujarat to defeat BJP and counter AAP". www.thehansindia.com. 25 December 2021. Retrieved 26 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Who is Jagdish Thakor, the ex-MP appointed as Gujarat Congress chief". Indian Express. 4 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  9. ^ "Fifteenth Lok Sabha: Jagdish Thakor". loksabhaph.nic.in. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  10. ^ "With Polls Ahead, New Gujarat Congress Chief Has His Task Cut Out". NDTV. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  11. ^ "Ahead Of 2022 Polls, Jagdish Thakor Appointed Gujarat Congress President". NDTV. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 3 December 2021.
  12. ^ "Youth in state angry as jobs go to BJP functionaries: Jagdish Thakor". The Indian Express. 28 December 2021. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  13. ^ "Gujarat Congress Jagdish Thakor on MLA Jignesh Mevani arrested". Pipanews. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  14. ^ "Gujarat: Congress Protests In Ahmedabad Against Sonia Gandhi's Questioning By ED". Outlook India. 21 July 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  15. ^ "Govt giving drugs and liquor to youth instead of jobs: Gujarat Congress chief Jagdish Thakor". The Indian Express. 28 July 2022. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  16. ^ IANS (9 September 2022). "Cong gives bandh call in Gujarat to protest against inflation, unemployment". Business Standard India. Retrieved 16 September 2022.
  1. Jagdish Thakor on National Portal of India