Arjun Singh

One of the most senior Congress leaders today, Arjun Singh rose through the political ranks in Madhya Pradesh before becoming a key figure on the national stage.

One of the most senior Congress leaders today, Arjun Singh rose through the political ranks in Madhya Pradesh before becoming a key figure on the national stage.

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Born in Sidhi in November 1930, Singh became a member of the Madhya Pradesh assembly at an early age of 27 and was soon made a state minister. In 1980, he took over as the chief minister and served for five years.

After a brief stint as Governor of Punjab, he became a Union minister in the Rajiv Gandhi cabinet and also entered the Lok Sabha in 1985. He returned to state politics for a short while in (1988-91) before returning to national politics as the HRD minister in Narasimha Rao's cabinet. He lost the Lok Sabha polls in 1996, but was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 2000.

Singh has been closely associated with various social and cultural bodies. He is married, and has three children.