MP's RS members are seasoned leaders

Bhopal, Mar 20 (UNI) Senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, who was today elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh, for the first time, has held several key posts including that of union I and B minister.

Earlier, she was nominated to the Upper House from Uttaranchal.

Born on February 14, 1952 at Ambala Cantt in Haryana, Mrs Swaraj -- a lawyer -- went on to become Delhi's first lady chief minister and the youngest face in the Haryana council of ministers. She was part of the 11th Lok Sabha and toured about 20 countries.

Another lady representative from the saffron party, Ms Anusiya Uike, was elected to the House of the Elders for the first time.

Hailing from this state's Chhindwara district, she was first elected an MLA in 1985 on a Congress ticket. Prior to entering the political arena, she was a college teacher.

Others elected unopposed were union HRD Minister Arjun Singh, former union minister Vikram Verma and BJP bigwig Narayan Singh Kesri who respectively belonged to Sidhi, Dhar and Indore districts.

The trio were elected for the second consecutive time.

Born on November 5, 1930 at Churhat in Sidhi, Mr Singh -- active in state and national-level politics for over four decades -- is also an ex-chief minister.

At the height of militancy in Punjab, he was appointed that state's governor and the crucial Rajiv-Longowal Accord was inked at his initiative.

Mr Verma, who served as sports and youth affairs minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, is an agriculturist and was born at Dhar's Dharampuri on January 23, 1944. Besides being leader of the opposition in the Madhya Pradesh assembly, he served as this state's school and higher education minister.

Mr Kesri was in charge of the BJP SC Morcha and was the Bharatiya Kranti Dal's state chief from 1966 to 1968.

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