By Alok Mohit and Neeraj Kumar
Patna, June 5: Shambhavi Chaudhary, who recently won the parliamentary elections on a Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) ticket from Bihar’s Samastipur, will be one of the youngest members in the new Lok Sabha.
Pushpendra Saroj of the Samajwadi Party, who triumphed in the Kaushambi LS seat in Uttar Pradesh, has become the youngest candidate to win a Lok Sabha election. Born on March 1, 1999, Saroj was just 25 years, three months, and four days old when the election results were declared.
Earlier, this record was held by Chandrani Murmu of Odisha, who was 25 years, 11 months, and nine days old when she was elected to the Lok Sabha in 2019.
Shambhavi, who was 25 years, 11 months, and 20 days old on June 4, will be the second youngest MP in the new Lok Sabha. Additionally, she holds the distinction of being the youngest Dalit MP. She also created a record for being the youngest MP from Bihar, a record previously held by former chief minister and RJD chief Lalu Prasad, who was elected from Chapra (now Saran) constituency at the age of 29 in 1977.
Shambhavi is the daughter of senior Janata Dal (United) minister in the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in Bihar, Ashok Kumar Choudhary. She defeated Congress candidate Sunny Hazari, son of another Bihar minister Maheshwar Hazari, by 187,537 votes.
A third-generation politician, Shambhavi’s grandfather, the late Mahavir Choudhary, was a state minister during Congress rule in Bihar. Her father is one of the most influential ministers in Nitish Kumar’s cabinet and was previously the state Congress president before switching to the JD(U).
The election in Samastipur was a high-stakes contest with the children of two key ministers in the Nitish Kumar government competing against each other. Shambhavi’s victory is expected to bolster Ashok Chaudhary’s influence in Bihar politics.
Following her victory, Shambhavi attributed her success to the people of Samastipur. Expressing gratitude to LJP(RV) president Chirag Paswan and the NDA leadership, she pledged to fulfill the expectations of her constituents. “This is not just an electoral victory. It signifies that the people have given me a place in their hearts. I will strive to meet all their expectations,” she said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi campaigned vigorously for Shambhavi, urging the people to support her. From the stage, he said, “The youngest daughter in the entire country is contesting the election. Bless her. Our daughter must win.”
Shambhavi is married to Sayan Kunal, the son of former IPS officer and secretary of the Mahavir Temple Trust in Patna, Acharya Kishore Kunal, who played a key role in the Ayodhya Ram Temple case. While Shambhavi belongs to the Dalit community, her husband is from the Bhumihar community, a factor that benefited her in Samastipur, where both Dalit and upper-caste communities voted in unison.
