Ajanta Neog

Ajanta Neog was born on 6 October 1960 in Assam; she is the daughter of Late Keshab Chandra Goswami, a former minister in the Assam government. She completed her Bachelor of Arts degree from Gauhati University. Growing up in a politically active family influenced her early interest in public life and state governance.

She entered electoral politics in 2001 and was elected as MLA from the Golaghat constituency on an Indian National Congress ticket. Over successive elections, she retained the seat, emerging as a prominent Congress leader in Upper Assam and holding important ministerial responsibilities in the Tarun Gogoi-led government.

During her tenure in the Congress government, she handled portfolios including the Public Works Department (PWD) and Social Welfare. In 2020, ahead of the Assam Assembly election, she resigned from the Congress and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party, marking a significant political shift in the state.

In the 2021 Assam Assembly election, Neog was re-elected from Golaghat as a BJP candidate and inducted into the Himanta Biswa Sarma-led cabinet as Finance Minister. She became the first woman to hold the Finance portfolio in Assam and has since presented multiple state budgets focusing on fiscal reforms, infrastructure allocation, and social sector spending.

As of 2026, she continues serving as Finance Minister, overseeing the state’s financial governance and economic planning.