Kunwar Vijay Shah

  1. Home
  2. Wiki

Kunwar Vijay Shah (born 1 November 1962)[1] is an Indian politician from Madhya Pradesh. He is an eight-time MLA from Harsud Assembly constituency, which is reserved for Scheduled Tribe community, in Khandwa District. He has represented the constituency for over three decades winning all the eight elections from 1990 to 2023.[2] He last won the 2023 Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly election, representing the Bharatiya Janata Party.[3][4]

Early life and education

[edit]

Shah is from the royal family of Makrai state, Harda district, Madhya Pradesh. He completed his M.A. in history in 1986 at Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore. His wife is in the team that runs the family businesses. He is the brother of Raja Ajay Shah and the son of Raja Devi Shah of Makrai State.[5] His family ruled Makrai state for about three centuries.[6] Kunwar translates to Prince.

Career

[edit]

Shah won from Harsud Assembly constituency in the 2023 Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly election representing the Bharatiya Janata Party. He polled 116,580 votes and defeated his nearest rival, Sukhram Salve of the Indian National Congress, by a margin of 59,996 votes.[7] He first became an MLA winning the 1990 Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly election. Thereafter, he won every election from Harsud in 1993, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013, 2018 and 2023.[8][2]

He was the forest minister in the Shivraj Singh Chauhan fourth ministry. Earlier, he was minister of school education in the Third Chouhan ministry. He also served various ministries including tribal affairs, tourism, public asset management, panchayat raj and rural development.[9][10]

Controversy

[edit]

In May 2025, an FIR was filed against Shah for allegedly making defamatory remarks against Colonel Sofia Qureshi, an Indian Army officer, who attended the media briefings during Operation Sindoor. The High Court of Madhya Pradesh took it up suo moto and directed the state director general of police to file the FIR. Shah claimed that his statement was misinterpreted and later issued an apology.[11][12] He challenged the FIR in the Supreme Court, but he was asked to apologise in the High Court.[13][14][15]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Shah, Dr. Kunwar Vijay, Bharatiya Janata Party Constituency - Harsud (176)" (PDF). mpvidhansabha.nic.in (in Hindi).
  2. ^ a b "Harsud Assembly Constituency Election Result - Legislative Assembly Constituency". resultuniversity.com. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  3. ^ "Harsud Constituency Election Results 2023: Harsud Assembly Seat Details, MLA Candidates & Winner". The Times of India. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  4. ^ "Harsud Lok Sabha Election 2024 Live: Get Harsud Lok Sabha Election Results and Candidate List". The Indian Express. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  5. ^ "BJP minister's brother joins Congress in MP - The Hindu". www.thehindu.com. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  6. ^ "Makrai (Princely State) Homepage and Map ::: Rajput Provinces of India". Archived from the original on 26 March 2014. Retrieved 15 August 2025.
  7. ^ "Harsud Election Result 2023 LIVE: BJP's Kunwar Vijay Shah wins fourth consecutive poll by 59,996 votes - CNBC TV18". CNBCTV18. 3 December 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  8. ^ "Harsud assembly election results 2023: Harsud Winning Candidates List and Vote Share". India Today. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  9. ^ "Dr. Kunwar Vijay Shah – IRC | India Rural Colloquy". Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  10. ^ "Madhya Pradesh cabinet: Meet the ministers of 'Team Yadav'". The Times of India. 26 December 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  11. ^ "'Ready to apologise 10 times, more respect for her than my sister': MP minister Vijay Shah backtracks from remarks against Colonel Sofiya Qureshi". The Times of India. 14 May 2025. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  12. ^ Sinha, Bhadra (15 May 2025). "'Every sentence should be uttered responsibly'—SC slams MP BJP minister for remarks on Col Sofiya Qureshi". ThePrint. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  13. ^ "Why diatribe against Col. Sofia Qureshi makes Vijay Shah a litmus test for BJP". India Today. 15 May 2025. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  14. ^ "'What kind of statements are you making?': SC asks MP minister Vijay Shah on remarks against Col Qureshi". The New Indian Express. 15 May 2025. Archived from the original on 15 May 2025. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  15. ^ "These 3 Officers Will Probe Minister's Remarks Against Colonel Qureshi". www.ndtv.com. Retrieved 20 May 2025.