Elected to the 13th Lok Sabha in 1999, Hema Gamang has been a strong voice for the people of Orissa in the Parliament. She was elected member of the committee on urban and rural development in 1999 and then moved on to become the member of the consultative committee of the Ministry of Steel in 2000.
Hema who is noted as an active member of many social and cultural clubs, hit the headlines because of a feud with her husband, former Orissa Chief Minister Giridhar Gamang over the Congress ticket to contest from the Koraput constituency.
Gamang, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from the seat in 1999 when her husband became Chief Minister, has been re-nominated by the Congress to seek re-election this time. This had infuriated her husband who had staked his claim to the constituency, which he had won eight times in a row between 1972 and 1998.
