Brinda Karat
| Brinda Karat | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Rajya Sabha | |
| In office 2005-present | |
| Constituency | West Bengal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 17 October 1947 Calcutta, West Bengal, India |
| Political party | Communist Party of India (Marxist) |
| Spouse(s) | Prakash Karat |
| Signature |  |
Brinda Karat (Bengali: বৃন্দা কারাট) (born 17 October 1947)[1] is a communist politician from India, elected to the Rajya Sabha as a Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI(M) member, on 11 April 2005 for West Bengal.
In 2005, she became the first woman member of the CPI(M) Politburo.[2] She has also been the general secretary of the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) from 1993 to 2004,[3][4] and thereafter its Vice President.[5]
Biography
Childhood and education
Brinda Karat was born in Calcutta, where she spent her early childhood in a family of four siblings, including one brother and three sisters. Her father was Sooraj Lal Das. She lost her mother Oshrukona Mitra, at the age of five.[citation needed] She has a sister, Radhika Roy who is married to Prannoy Roy.
Brinda was educated at the elite Welham Girls School in Dehradun and, at 16, went on to do her B.A. Degree at Miranda House, a college affiliated to the University of Delhi. In 1971, she enrolled for her M.A.in History at the [[University of Calcutta
Political career
In 1967, after graduation from Miranda House, she left for London, where she worked with Air India at Bond Street for four years. While working for Air India, she campaigned against the mandatory wearing of skirts in the airlines rather than the saree.The Air India. headquarters finally agreed with her and ever since then women working for the airline in London can exercise a choice of whether to wear a saree or a skirt as their uniform.
In an interview, Karat says she returned to India motivated to work for the people.[6] While working in London, she became associated with the anti-imperialist, and anti-war movements during the Vietnam War and Marxist ideology.[7] She joined many of the anti war demonstrations in London.
In 1971, she decided to leave her job and return to Calcutta, where she joined the Communist Party of India (Marxist) CPI (M). She started her political work as a student activist since under the guidance of the Party she enrolled as a student in Calcutta University.]]On the suggestion of the party to understand practical politics, she joined the Calcutta University.[6] Initially she worked with students in the college campus and later during the Bangladesh war at refugee camps in the State.She was also writing for the Party weekly and later became a full time worker there.
In 1975, she shifted to Delhi and started working as a trade union organiser with textile mill workers in North Delhi. She grew to be active with worker's movements and the Indian women's movements.[8] She gained prominence in the campaign for reform of rape laws in the 1980s. Karat was relegated from the central committee in the wake of her protest against the lack of representation of women in politburo. But the party found it an act against Leninist principles. Even today, Brinda stands out as a prominent campaigner for gender issues.[9]
On 11 April 2005, she was elected to the Indian Parliament, Rajya Sabha as a CPI(M) member, for West Bengal.
In 2005, only after the inclusion of 5 women members to the Central Committee did Brinda Karat agree to be nominated to the exclusive 17 member Politburo. . The Politburo is the highest decision-making body of the party and Brinda Karat is its first woman member.[10]
Recent controversies
Remarks on Baba Ramdev
Her remarks accusing Yoga Guru Swami Ramdev of violating labor laws, and publicising accusations about his workers mixing human body parts in potions,[11] have drawn strong condemnation from some in North India, including reprimands from politicians like Sharad Pawar, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Ambika Soni, and Narayan Dutt Tiwari. Pawar noted that Baba Ramdev's 'scientific approach' to yoga was useful [12] while Laloo Prasad Yadav denounced Karat's allegations.[13] Subsequently she received a legal notice on the behalf of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader in Faridabad.[14]
Family
She is married to Prakash Karat, a Keralite by origin and a prominent CPI(M) leader, holding the position of General Secretary currently. Her sister Radhika Roy is married to Prannoy Roy, founder and CEO of NDTV.[15] In 2005, she acted in Amu,[16] a film made by her niece, Shonali Bose, on the Anti-Sikh riots in 1984. She is also related to the Marxist historian Vijay Prashad.
Literary works
Brinda is the author of Survival and Emancipation: Notes from Indian Women's Struggles. This is a comprehensive book on the wide ranging concerns of the women’s movements in India from a left perspective.[2][3]
Bibliography
- Survival and Emancipation: Notes from Indian Women's Struggles. Three Essays Collective, New Delhi, 2005. ISBN 81-88789-37-2.
References
- ↑ Interview, livemint
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Book Review, Frontline, Jul 02 - 15, 2005
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Author profile, threeessays
- ↑ New woman on top December 2004
- ↑ The 7th National Conference of AIDWA, Frontline, Dec. 04 - 17, 2004
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 The Rediff Interview/Marxist leader Brinda Karat
- ↑ Interview, The Tribune,February 8, 2004
- ↑ The Faceless Female Worker, The Times of India, 22 Jun 2005
- ↑ `It is a question of political will', Interview, Frontline, July 2005
- ↑ Interview, Rediff part 2
- ↑ In the name of Ayurveda, The Frontline, Feb. 10, 2006
- ↑ Pawar appreciates work of Ramdev The Hindu - 9 January 2006
- ↑ Asia Times, Jan 28, 2006
- ↑ Legal Notice over Ramdev Issue
- ↑ Exclusive Interview/Brinda Karat rediff.com; "Since her equally talented sister Radhika Roy and brother-in-law Dr Prannoy Roy run NDTV (New Delhi Television), Brinda's Leftist orientation is intriguing for many"
- ↑ Brinda Karat at the Internet Movie Database
External links
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