Gauri Shankar Shejwar


Gauri Shankar Shejwar is a senior political leader of Bharatiya Janata Party in Madhya Pradesh and was a senior Cabinet Minister in the state government from 2013-18. He was a Cabinet Minister in-charge of multiple portfolios such as Forests, Planning, Economics & Statistics in the Madhya Pradesh State Government headed by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan from 2013-2018. He was also the Minister in-charge of the Narmada Seva Yatra - a unique river conservation and development programme led by Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Political career

Elected to Vidhan Sabha as MLA for the first time at the age of 27 years in 1977, Shejwar was appointed Parliamentary Secretary of Public Health & Family Welfare Department. He was also State Vice-President of Janata Yuva Morcha during his initial career. He has been the lead campaign manager for former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee when the latter won from Vidisha Lok Sabha constituency in MP during the 1991 general elections. He was elected Bharatiya Janata Party MLA 7 times from Raisen district in Madhya Pradesh out of 9 times that he contested assembly elections. He is a trained medical doctor from Gandhi Medical College - Bhopal.
In the past, he has been cabinet minister in different BJP governments that have governed Madhya Pradesh. He has held important portfolios such as Forests, Home Affairs, Power & Energy, Health, and Education during his different tenures as a Minister. He has also served as the Leader of Opposition, leading the BJP Legislative Party in the MP Legislative Assembly during Digvijay Singh led Congress government's second term in power. In the elections to the Madhya Pradesh State Assembly in December 2013 he was elected as MLA by a huge margin of 21,000 votes.
Born in 1950 in Udaipura in Raisen district, Shejwar is personally involved in agricultural and charitable healthcare activities. He is married to Kiran Shejwar and has a son and two daughters. Virendra Kumar Khatik is his brother-in-law.