Ajit Jogi was the chief minister of Chhatisgarh, India between 2000 and 2003. He was a member of Indian National Congress until he was suspended for bribing MLAs of the Bharatiya Janata Party to form an alternative/rebel government after he was thrown out of government by the verdict of elections in 2003.

He was born on April 29, 1946 to Shri Kashi Prasad Joshi at Vill. Pendra Road, Distt. Bilaspur (Madhya Pradesh). He married Dr. Renu Jogi on October 8, 1975 and has a son, Amit and a daughter. He is a mechanical engineer educated at Maulana Azad College of Technology, Bhopal, Vikram University, Ujjain, and Faculty of Law, University of Delhi. He has worked as a teacher, civil servant, political and social worker.

Table of contents
1 Positions Held
2 Books Published
3 Literary, Art and Scientific Accomplishments
4 Social and Cultural Activities
5 Special Interests
6 Sports and Clubs
7 Countries Visited
8 Other Information

Positions Held

  • 1986-87 Member, All India Congress Committee (AICC) on welfare of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.

  • 1986-1998 Member, Rajya Sabha (2 terms)
  • 1987-1989 General secretary, Pradesh Congress Committee, Madhya Pradesh Also, member of committees on Public Undertakings, Industries and Railways.
  • 1989 Central Observer of the Indian National Congress for elections to Lok Sabha from constituencies in Manipur.
  • 1995 Central Observer of the Indian National Congress for elections to Sikkim Assembly.
  • 1995-96 Chairman of Committees on Science and Technology and Environment and Forests
  • 1996 Member, Core group, AICC Parliamentary elections (Lok Sabha)
  • 1997 Observer, Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee Elections. Member, AICC. Member of committees on Transport and Tourism, Rural and Urban Development, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Coal, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Energy, Public Accounts Committee, Convenor, Sub-Committee on Indirect Taxes, Panel of Vice-Chairmen, Rajya Sabha

  • 1998 Elected to 12th Lok Sabha

  • 1998-2000 Spokesman, AICC, Whip, Congress Parliamentary Party, Working President, Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee

  • 1998-99 Member, Committee on Human Resouce Development and its Sub-Committee-II on Medical Education, Committee on Coal, Consultative Committee, Ministry of Coal

  • 2000-2003 Chief minister of Chattisgarh

Books Published

  1. The Role of District Collector
  2. Administration of Peripheral Areas

Literary, Art and Scientific Accomplishments

Contributed several articles on Public Administration and stories and poems in Hindi and English to Hindustan Times; Jansatta and Dharmayug and also contributing a regular weekly column to Dainik Bhaskar - a daily in Hindi; a Gold Medalist in B.E. from Vikram University

Social and Cultural Activities

Associated with the welfare of the "weaker sections" of society, especially Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, minorities and backward classes, handicapped and leprosy patients; organisation of cooperatives to end exploitation; environment protection; tribal and folk art and culture of India; youth welfare, education and employment; Chairman, State Government Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Welfare Committee, Madhya Pradesh; in recognition of his services, rendered as a social activist, villages, irrigation, tanks, roads and urban localities in Sidhi, Shahdol, Raipur, Indore and Bilaspur have been named after him.

Special Interests

Welfare of tribals, minorities and other "weaker sections" of society; science and technology, infrastructure development and reforming parliamentary system.

Sports and Clubs

Horse riding, gliding, swimming, yoga and trekking;

Member:

  1. Madhya Pradesh Badminton Association, 1971-73;
  2. Madhya Pradesh Boat and Gliding Club, 1981-84

Countries Visited

Widely travelled (23 countries); Member:

  1. Indian Delegation to the United Nations for the 50th Anniversary Celebrations, New York, 1996
  2. Indian Delegation to the Centennial Olympic Games, Atlanta, 1996
  3. Indian Delegation to 98th IPU Conference, Cairo, 1997

Other Information

Mussoorie, 1970-71

  • Chairman, State Government Minor Forest, Produce Committee, 1988-90

  • Member, Governing Bodies, Council of Indian Institute of Technology, Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow, Education Consultancy
of India Limited, Lawrence Schools, Sanawar and Lovedale, St. Stephen's Hospital, Delhi and Christian Medical College, Ludhiana

Indian Administrative Service (Collector and District Magistrate, Sidhi, Shahdol, Raipur and Indore districts of Madhya Pradesh, 1970-1986), Indo-US Sub-Commission on Education and Culture, 1992-94, Panchayati Raj Implementation Committee of AICC and Court of Jawaharlal Nehru University, 1998-99.

Undertook Padyatra (travel by foot), covering 1500 kms in eastern tribal belt of Madhya Pradesh to spread general awareness and mobilise support for the Indian National Congress, 1989, covering 185 kms. from Manipur to Deobhag in the Diamond belt of Raipur District, January 1997 to spread awareness among the tribals against the entry of multinational corporations in Diamond-Mining Sector; holding All India record of the longest serving Collector/District Magistrate for 12 years at Sidhi, Shahdol, Raipur and Indore districts of Madhya Pradesh, 1974-1986.