Politics for long has been an arena where power and money usually collide. It is often considered a playground for the richest people in the country. Hiwever, many successful politicians, both in tbe past and at the present, had their roots in poverty. One of the primary examples of this is the current Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi who used to sell tea during his early childhood. Politics is a field where even the most unfortunate person can try their luck and come out achieving something if not all. From Charan Singh to Ram Nath Kovind, Dr. BR Ambedkar to HD Deve Gowda, here are 10 Indian politicians who were born in a poor family but went on to become successful politicians:
1. Lal Bahadur Shastri India’s 2nd Prime Minister, Lal Bahadur Shastri has been hailed as one of the greats in the Indian political class. However, his financial beginnings are rooted in a humble background. His father was a school teacher who later became a clerk.
2. Charan Singh Known as the “champion of Indian peasants,” Charan Singh was born in a poor farmers’ family and hence knew the struggle of being a small farmer. He went on to become the 5th Prime Minister of India, the first-ever farmer to do so.
3. Ram Nath Kovind The current President of India, Ram Nath Kovind was born into extreme poverty in a remote village of Uttar Pradesh. His father ran a shop and was a small farmer. His mother was a housemaker. Kovind was born in a mud hut, which eventually collapsed.
4. Narendra Modi Currently serving as the 14th Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi’s difficult childhood is known across the country. He was born into a lower-class family to a grocer vendor father. He went on to sell tea during his early childhood to sustain himself.
5. Dr. BR Ambedkar A revolutionary of his time, Dr. BR Ambedkar served as the first-ever Minister of Law and Justice of India in 1947 from the Congress party. He was born to an army officer father who held the rank of Subedar and had 13 siblings.
6. HD Deve Gowda HD Deve Gowda was born in 1933 in a modest farmers’ family. His father was a paddy farmer in Holenarasipura Taluk, Karnataka. He went on to become the 14th Chief Minister of Karnataka and 11th Prime Minister of India from the Janata Dal party.
7. Manik Sarkar Famous for his down-to-earth lifestyle, Manik Sarkar became the 9th Chief Minister of Assam in 1998. He was born into a lower-middle-class family. His father worked as a tailor and his mother was a government employee.
8. APJ Abdul Kalam APJ Abdul Kalam, infamously, was born in a debt-stricken family on Pamban Island of Tamil Nadu. He went on to become one of the greatest scientists in modern India and finally, the 13th President of India. However, he had ancestral wealth which his family lost before he was born.
9. Chandra Shekhar Born to a farmer’s family in a village of Uttar Pradesh, Chandra Shekhar endured a hard poor life. His financial condition did not stop him from getting knowledge and power, and he went on to become the 8th Prime Minister of India from the Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya).
10. Lalu Prasad Yadav was born to milkman and was severely stricken with poverty. He used to live with his brother at a government clerk quarter and stayed there until he became the Chief Minister of Bihar. He even served as the Union Railway Minister.
