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Pratap Chandra Sarangi is an Indian politician. He belongs to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is serving as the Minister of State (MoS) for Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries and the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
Wiki/Biography
Sarangi was born on 4 January 1955 (age 64 years; as in 2019) in Gopinathpur Village, Nilagiri, Balasore, Odisha. His zodiac sign is Capricorn. He did his schooling from K. C. High School, Nilgiri, Odisha in 1971. He pursued his graduation from the Fakir Mohan College, Balasore, Odisha in 1975. Since his college days, he wanted to be a monk of the Ramakrishna Math. He visited Belur Math in Howrah, West Bengal to become a monk. The monks of Belur Math declined his request and told him that he should not become a monk; as his mother is a widow and still alive, so, he should take care of her. However, Sarangi was keen on serving people, so he joined the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
He became very popular in his area as everybody in his village knew that he genuinely wanted to help people and would do so in any way possible. He did many things for the betterment of the people in his village. He started Ekal Vidyalayas (village schools with a single school teacher) in the interiors of Odisha to help the children who could not afford to go to school. He later joined the Bajrang Dal, and eventually, became the President of the Bajrang Dal in 1999.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 5″
Weight (approx.): 60 kg
Eye Colour: Black
Hair Colour: Grey
Family, Wife & Caste
Pratap Chanda Sarangi belongs to a Utkala Brahmin Family. His father was Gobinda Chandra Sarangi. His mother’s name is not known; she died in 2018. Not much is known about his family. Sarangi is a bachelor.
Political Career
Pratap Chandra Sarangi came into active politics when he was elected to the Odisha Assembly as an MLA in 2004 from the Nilagiri Constituency. He was quite popular in his area as he was involved in social work for more than a decade. He was well known and used to take care of the people of his Constituency. People from his Constituency often said that Sarangi is very caring; he visits them when they are sick, listens to their problems, and resolves them.
In the 2009 Assembly elections of Odisha, he contested again from the Nilagiri Constituency and won. He did many things in his constituency to help the people and uplift them. He started many schools in his constituency which helped children get basic education and go on to study in senior schools and colleges to pursue higher education. In 2014, the BJP announced his name as their candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from the Balasore Constituency of Odisha. Sarangi contested but lost to the BJD candidate by 1.42 Lakh votes. For the 2019 General Elections, the BJP announced his name again from the Balasore Constituency. He won by 12,000 votes and was elected as an MP. On 31 May 2019, he was sworn in as a Minister of State (MoS) for Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in the Narendra Modi Government by the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind.
Controversies
- Sarangi was accused of being aware of the killings to be carried out by Bajrang Dal y. Reaoze activists in Monoharpur village, Odisha in 1999. An Australian Christian missionary, Graham Staines and his 2 sons, were reportedly burnt alive while they were asleep in their station wagon. Dara Singh, a member of the Bajrang Dal was the main accused in the whole incident. The Odisha High Court awarded him death sentence for this crime and 11 other members, including Sarangi, were freed as there was no evidence against them.
- Sarangi was arrested in 2002 for being a part of an attack on the Odisha Assembly by many right-wing groups. He was charged with assault, rioting, arson, and damaging government property.
Assets & Properties
Cash: Rs. 15,000
Bank Deposits: Rs. 3.81 Lacs
Bonds & Debentures: Rs. 50,000
Salary & Net Worth
Salary: Rs. 1 Lac + Additional allowances (as Cabinet Minister)
Net Worth: Rs. 13.46 Lacs (as in 2019)
Facts
- Pratap Sarangi lives a very simple life. He lives in a hut and has very few belongings.
- He loves children and often spends time with them and reads them stories, teaches them, and plays cricket with them.
- During the 2019 General Elections, he campaigned all over Balasore in an auto.
- Everybody in his village calls him Nana and they respect and treat him as an elder brother.
- The day he took the oath as an MoS, he was asked about his upcoming lifestyle to which he replied-
My lifestyle has been like this since childhood. It is not going to change now that I have become an MP. I believe in living and working for the people and the country and I am going to follow that throughout my life”
- He claims his success is all because of Narendra Modi and states that his commitment, integrity and simplicity towards the country and his work motivates him to better.