Little known facts about Arvind Kejriwal

Arvind Kejriwal is Chief Minister of Delhi since February 2015. He previously served as CM from December 2013 to February 2014, stepping down after 49 days. He is founder member of Aam Admi Party also.

"Spoke to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and wished him on his birthday. My prayer for his long life and good health." the Prime Minister tweeted.

Arvind Kejriwal, the man who is known as 'common man' (Aam Aadmi) plunged into politics by quitting his high-profile job of an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) as the Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, to found Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Nov 26, 2012.

Personal life

He was born on August 16, 1968 in Hisar, Haryana. Most of his schooling was done from small north Indian towns like Sonepat, Hisar and Mathura in Uttar Pradesh.

He married his former colleague Sunita, who was in IRS department. The couple is blessed with two children- a daughter and a son.

Education

After completing his schooling in 1985, he went to pursue Mechanical Engineering from one of the top most institutions in India- IIT Kharagpur. He cleared the IIT-JEE entrance exam in first attempt!

Start of Career

He started his professional career from TATA Steels and worked for almost four years from 1989 till 1992, after which he appeared for civil service examination.

Till the time the result was going to be out, he worked with Mother Teresa and then with Ramakrishna Mission and Nehru Yuva Kendra.

Life as an activist

Kejriwal during his tenure of his Income Tax Sevice Officer, brought to light, the movement, through his NGO Parivartan (change), by solving 800 cases within 18 months.

One of the main highlight and achievement of his career is the enactment of "Right to Information" act in 2005.

Earlier, under the RTI, corrupt people could be identified, but their was no law for punishment, so Kejriwal quit his high-profile job in 2006, to campaign for a new law under which corrupt people can be punished.

Jan Lokpal Bill

Anti-corruption crusader and social activist Anna Hazare was the main person behind Jan Lokpal movement in 2012, but Kejriwal played a pivotal role in drafting the Lokpal Bill along with the former IPS officer Kiran Bedi and other members.

The formation of AAP

After a long fast-unto-death protest by Anna Hazare in New Delhi's Jantar Mantar and Ramlila Maidan, Kejriwal decided to form his own party Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in 2012.

Some interesting facts about Kejriwal:

He believes in simplicity and is a vegetarian by choice.

Besides being studious, he is a fan of Bollywood actor Aamir Khan and like to watch comedy movies.

Even at his work place, he refused to use service of peon and personally cleaned his desk.

Kejriwal does not celebrate his or his children's birthdays.

Against the VIP treatment

Even after becoming the CM of Delhi, Kejriwal refused to accept 'lal batti gaadi' (red-beacon car) and facilities for his security.

Awards & Recognition

In 2005, he received Satyendra K Dubey Memorial Award at IIT Kanpur, for his campaign to bring transparency in governance.

In 2006, he was awarded with Ramon Magsaysay Award for his leadership qualities, but he donated his prize money to an NGO.

In 2014, Kejriwal earned the international recognition when Times magazine mentioned his name in the list of the most influential people in the world.

OneIndia News