Know Your Minister - Shruti Choudhry - Carrying Forward the Bansi Lal Legacy

Born on October 3, 1975, in New Delhi, Shruti Choudhary come from one of Haryana's most influential political families. Shruti Choudhary's grandfather, Bansi Lal, served as Haryana's Chief Minister and both her parents - Surender Singh and Kiran Choudhry - were state ministers. Shruti is married to lawyer Arunabh Chowdhary since March 7, 2003.

Shruti has a strong acdemic background, from Convent of Jesus & Mary and DPS RK Puram, she went on to study at Oxford, England. She further strengthened her academic foundation with a BA from Delhi University and LLB from BR Ambedkar University, Agra. Before entering politics, she practiced law at the prestigious Karanjewala & Co. Shruti Choudhry's entry into politics was followed up by a moment when her grandfather placed "pagri" on her head after her father's deminse in a helicopter crash in 2005.

Political Journey and Transitions

Shruti 's political journey began in 2009 when she defeated INLD's Ajay Singh Chautala by 55,097 votes in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections from Bhiwani-Mahendragarh seat. Bhiwani-Mahendragarh's seat was of immense significance to Shruti as her grandfather had won it three times and her father twice. During her parliamentary tenure, she served on crucial committees like Committee on Agriculture (2009), Committee on Empowerment of Women (2010) and Committee on Public Undertakings (2013). Shruti's growing stature was evident when she represented India at the 68th UN General Assembly.

Congress to BJP

The period between 2014 tp 2024 was full of challenges as Shruti lost 2014 Lok Sabha elections. She continued her work with Congress but faced a setback when party chose Rao Dan Singh over her for the Bhiwani-Mahendragarh seat in Lok sabha Election 2024. This was a turning point in her political career. Shruti along with her mother Kiran Choudhry left Congress and joined BJP citing Prime Minister Modi's vision as an inspiration. Her political rebirth with BJP proved successful when she won the Tosham Assembly seat in 2024 Haryana Assembly elections by an impressive margin of 14,257 votes. Shruti is currently serving as Cabinet Minister for Irrigation and Water Resources and Women and Child Development.

Beyond politics, Choudhry demonstrates strong business sense through her stakes in multiple companies like Aldorado Resorts Pvt. Ltd, Amrit Mercantile Ltd, Marudhar Awas Pvt. Ltd and Pluto Holding Pvt. Ltd. 

Vision and Current Responsibilities 

As Minister for Irrigation and Water Resources and Women & Child Development, her focus areas include:

• Implementing sustainable water management practices 
• Improving groundwater quality 
• Strengthening women empowerment programs
• Modernizing irrigation infrastructure 
• Enhancing child development initiatives