Personal Details

• 🎂 Date of Birth
• 04 September 1941
• 🌍 Place of Birth
• Solapur, Maharashtra
• 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family
• Father: Sambhaji Rao Shinde
• Mother: Sakhu Bai
• Spouse: Ujwala Shinde
• Children: Praniti Shinde

Early Career

• Sushilkumar Shinde's career began as a police sub-inspector, marking the start of his journey in public service.
• 📚 Early Life and Education
• Sushilkumar Shinde was born in Solapur to Sambhaji Rao Shinde and Sakhu Bai.
• He pursued his higher studies at Dayanand College, Solapur, where he graduated with an Honors degree in Arts. Later, he went on to study law and obtained his LLB degree from ILS Law College and New Law College, University of Bombay, Maharashtra.
• 👨‍💼 Early Career
• Shinde began his professional journey in 1957 as a bailiff at the Sessions Court of Solapur, a position he held until 1965. Following this, he joined the Maharashtra Police as a constable, marking the beginning of his career in law enforcement.
• His dedication and skills led him to serve in the Maharashtra CID (Crime Investigation Department) for six years, where he worked as a sub-inspector of police under the mentorship of Amukuraj Patil, who played a crucial role in shaping his early policing career.

Career Journey

• A seasoned politician, Sushilkumar Shinde, has left his mark through decades of service in Indian politics, navigating diverse portfolios with resilience and experience.
• 🗳️ Entry into Politics
• In 1971, Sushilkumar Shinde formally entered politics by joining the Indian National Congress. He achieved his first major success in 1974, when he won the Maharashtra State Assembly elections. Over the years, he was re-elected several times, securing victories in 1980, 1985, 1990, 1992, and later in 2003 and 2004.
• 🏛️ Role in Parliament
• Shinde was first elected to the Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra, serving from July 1992 to March 1998. He returned to the Rajya Sabha unopposed for a second term on 20 March 2006. He was later elected to the Lok Sabha, representing Solapur, and also served as the Leader of the House in the Lok Sabha after Pranab Mukherjee was elected President in 2012.
• 📢 Campaign Manager and Vice-Presidential Candidate
• In 1999, Shinde played a crucial role as the campaign manager for Congress President Sonia Gandhi during her election from Amethi, Uttar Pradesh. In 2002, he contested the election for the post of Vice President of India, but was defeated by Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the NDA candidate.
• 👔 Chief Minister of Maharashtra
• Shinde served as the 15th Chief Minister of Maharashtra from January 2003 to November 2004, succeeding Vilasrao Deshmukh and later handing the position back to him.
• 🏛️ Governor of Andhra Pradesh
• On 30 October 2004, he was appointed the Governor of Andhra Pradesh, replacing Surjit Singh Barnala. He held this post until 29 January 2006, after which Rameshwar Thakur succeeded him.
• ⚡ Union Minister of Power
• From 2006 to 2012, Shinde served as the Union Minister of Power in the Manmohan Singh government. During this time, he handled several challenges, including the 2012 Northern India power grid failure, one of the largest blackouts in history.
• 🛡️ Union Home Minister
• In 2012, Shinde was appointed the Union Minister of Home Affairs. His tenure included two major and controversial decisions — the hanging of terrorists Ajmal Kasab (involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks) and Afzal Guru (convicted in the 2001 Parliament attack).
• 🗳️ Later Political Career and Final Elections
• In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Shinde contested from Solapur but was defeated by Sharad Bansode of the BJP. He again contested in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from the same constituency but lost to Siddheshwar Maharaj (BJP) by a margin of 156,261 votes. Following this defeat, Shinde declared that the 2019 elections would be his last contest in electoral politics.
• 🏛️ Positions Held
• Sushilkumar Shinde began his political journey as a Member of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly from 1974 to 1992. During this period, he held several ministerial portfolios in the Maharashtra government, including Minister of State for Sports and Cultural Affairs (1974–1975), Minister of State for Finance, Family Welfare, Sports and Cultural Affairs (1975–1977), and later served as a Cabinet Minister for Labour and Tourism (1978). He went on to handle key ministries such as Finance, Planning, Sports and Cultural Affairs (1983–1985), Finance, Planning, Environment (1985), Finance, Planning, Industry, Law and Judiciary, and Social Welfare (1986), and again Finance, Cultural Affairs, Sports and Planning (1988–1990). In the early 1990s, he served as Cabinet Minister for Urban Development (1990) and later combined the Urban Development, Law, and Judiciary portfolios (1991).
• At the national level, Shinde was first elected to the Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra (1992–1998). He then entered the Lok Sabha, representing Solapur as a member of the Twelfth Lok Sabha (1998–1999) and the Thirteenth Lok Sabha (1999–2003). Returning to state politics, he briefly re-entered the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly (2003–2004) before becoming the Chief Minister of Maharashtra (2003–2004). Following this, he was appointed the Governor of Andhra Pradesh (2004–2006).
• Shinde returned to Parliament as a Rajya Sabha member (2006–2009) and also served in the Union Cabinet as the Minister of Power (2006–2012). He was later elected to the Fifteenth Lok Sabha (2009–2014), continuing as Power Minister before being elevated to the role of Union Home Minister of India (2012–2014). In the same year, he also became the Leader of the House in Lok Sabha (2012–2014), marking one of the highest points of his political career
• 🎬 Theatre and Films
• The Marathi film Dusari Goshta (2014) depicts Shinde’s life journey from childhood to his rise as a prominent politician.
• A documentary film, Andherese Ujale Ki Aour, also chronicles his life, portraying his struggles and achievements.

Achievements and Milestones

• 🏆 Awards and Honors
• Selected among the Ten Noteworthy Youth of the country by the Indian Jaycees – 1977
• Chosen as the second most popular Minister in a survey by Manohar Weekly – 1978
• Conferred the Basav Bhushan Award as “Ideal Youth” by the Congress Party – 1981
• Received the National Citizen Award as the Best Member of Parliament from Mother Teresa – 1996
• Honored with the Bhai Bagal Award and ranked third in India Today – Reader’s Choice Best Chief Minister – 2003
• Awarded the Guruvarya Shankarrao Kanitkar Award by senior journalist Arun Tikekar – 2005
• Served as Chancellor of Tilak Maharashtra Vidhyapeeth – 2005–2007 & 2007–2009
• Conferred Doctor of Literature (D.Litt.) by D.Y. Patil University (Literature) – 2007
• Received a second Doctor of Literature (D.Litt.) from Srikrishna Devarai University, Andhra Pradesh (Literature) – 2007
• Awarded a third Doctor of Literature (D.Litt.) by Rajiv Gandhi Technical University, Bhopal (Science) – 2009
• Honored with Navshakti Jeevan Gaurav Puraskar by Navshakti Times – 2009
• Received the Government Award of Ideal Teacher in memory of Education Officer B.C. Dhegale – 2009