Ambika Soni

Ambika Soni Biography

Ambika Soni is an Indian politician of Indian National Congress who served as the union minister in charge of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting from May 2009 - 28 October 2012 in the ministry of Dr. Manmohan Singh. Currently she serves as an MP of Rajya sabha from Punjab. Soni began her political career in 1969 and has been a close associative of Indira Gandhi and at present, she serves as Sonia's right hand. Soni has been the Youth Congress chief when Sanjay Gandhi was dominant in the late 1970’s and now, she is a leading personality of Indian National Congress. She is married to Uday Soni, who has served as Indian Foreign Service officer.

She was born as the daughter of an Indian Civil Service officer, Nakul Sain in the year 1942. She started as a volunteer in the Congress office, Windsor Place at the age of 15. Her first assigned job in Indian politics was to maintain newspaper cuttings in 1969. She became Youth Congress president at the age of 34 and later rose to prominent positions of the party including Congress spokesperson, head of the Congress media committee and AICC General Secretary. She has been close with Nehru family since the time of Indira Gandhi.

In 1977 she quit as Youth Congress chief taking the responsibility for the party's defeat. Later in 1986, her party, the Congress (S), decided to return to Rajiv Gandhi's Congress (I). In March 1976 she was elected to Rajya Sabha for the first time. In her political career, she has held many senior posts including Minister of Tourism and Minister of Culture in UPA government (2006-2009), before being appointed as union minister of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

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Updated: March 28, 2014