->Citation bot at 20:34, 9 December 2021

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{{Short description|Indian politician}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Manju Verma
| image =
| caption =
| birth_date =
| birth_place =
| residence =[[Supaul]]
| death_date =
| death_place =
| office = Member of [[Bihar Legislative Assembly]]
| constituency = [[Cheria-Bariarpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Cheria-Bariarpur]]
| termstart = 2010-Present
| predecessor = Anil Choudhary
| successor =
| party = [[Janata Dal United]]
| religion =
| spouse = Chandrashekhar Verma
| children =
| website =
}}

'''Manju Verma''' is an [[India]]n politician and Member of [[Bihar Legislative Assembly]]. She was the Minister of Social Welfare in the [[Nitish Kumar sixth ministry|Bihar Cabinet]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailyo.in/politics/nitish-kumar-bihar-shelter-home-muzaffarpur-rape-minor-girls-corruption-opposition-bjp-congress/story/1/25937.html|title=Nitish Kumar has traced the real culprit in the Muzaffarpur shelter home outrage - the 'system'|website=www.dailyo.in|access-date=2018-08-07}}</ref>

==Early life==
Verma belongs to Kushwaha or the [[Koeri]] caste.<ref name="Telegraph">{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/bihar/caste-card-counter/cid/1445945|title=Caste card counter |first=Amit|last=Bhelari|quote="I belong to the Kushwaha caste which is also known as Koiri. Our caste has always become the role model of guiding the society, our ancestor is emperor Asoka and we follow his guidelines. We are engaged in farming and feed others. We never suppress anyone and are not involved in heinous crimes. It is the RJD and the Yadav caste that is involved in such acts," Manju declared at a media conference at her 6 Strand Road residence.|website=[[The Telegraph (Kolkata)|The Telegraph]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200914064222/https://www.telegraphindia.com/bihar/caste-card-counter/cid/1445945 |accessdate=2020-07-27|archive-date=14 September 2020 }}</ref>
As per her affidavit submitted to [[Election Commission of India]], she has pursued education up to intermediate level and her husband has been an agriculturist.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://myneta.info/bihar2015/candidate.php?candidate_id=95|title=InfoBiharcandidate_Manju Verma |website=Myneta.com|accessdate=2020-07-27}}</ref>

==Political career==
Manju Verma has been an MLA from [[Cheria-Bariarpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Cheria-Bariarpur constituency]] twice which falls under [[Begusarai]] Lok Sabha constituency. The seat she represents was earlier also represented by her father-in-law who was a member of [[Communist Party of India]], while her husband is also a leader of [[Janata Dal (United)]] to which she belonged earlier. Verma has been an MLA in 2010 as well as 2015.In 2015, she was the only female member of [[Nitish Kumar]]'s cabinet where she was given the portfolio of social justice ministry.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://m.economictimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/bihar-minister-manju-verma-plays-caste-card-in-muzaffarpur-aftermath/articleshow/65316260.cms|title=bihar-minister-manju-verma-plays-caste-card-in-muzaffarpur-aftermath|first=Aman|last=Sharma |website=Economic Times|accessdate=2020-07-27}}</ref>

Verma was expelled from JD(U) after the notorious [[Muzaffarpur shelter case]] in which she was allegedly involved. The maintenance of shelter home in which minor girls were kept was under the charge of her ministry. Later, she and her husband were also booked under "arms act", when CBI raid took place upon their ancestral house in connection with the "shelter case" which involved sexual abuse against destitute minor girls. The police however failed to arrest her after the case was lodged and the owner of shelter home, Brajesh Thakur was arrested. After three months, she surrendered into the court and accused JD(U) and Nitish Kumar of targeting her.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/ex-bihar-minister-manju-verma-says-being-harrased-because-she-belongs-to-weaker-caste-1956526|title=ex-bihar-minister-manju-verma-says-being-harrased-because-she-belongs-to-weaker-caste-|website=NDTV|accessdate=2020-07-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/muzaffarpur-shelter-home-brajesh-thakur-moves-hc-against-jail-for-life-for-sexual-assault/1899032|title=muzaffarpur-shelter-home-brajesh-thakur-moves-hc-against-jail-for-life-for-sexual-assault|website=outlook India|accessdate=2020-07-27}}</ref>

In March 2019, Patna [[High Court]] granted bail to her in both the cases while her husband remained lodged in the jail.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/ex-minister-manju-verma-granted-bail-by-patna-hc/article26516076.ece|title=ex-minister-manju-verma-granted-bail-by-patna-hc|first=Amarnath|last=Tewary|website=[[The Hindu]]|accessdate=2020-07-27}}</ref> After Verma's resignation as the social welfare minister in connection with the case, Krishnandan Verma, the education minister in [[Sixth Nitish Kumar ministry|Nitish's 6th cabinet]] was allocated additional charge of social welfare ministry. During her trial Manju Verma had claimed that, she has been harassed because of her [[caste]], thus allocation of her ministry to Krishnandan Verma was taken as a moderation attempt by the JD(U) leadership.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/education-minister-krishnandan-varma-gets-social-welfare-charge-after-manju-verma-s-resignation-118080901149_1.html|title=education-minister-krishnandan-varma-gets-social-welfare-charge-after-manju-verma-s-resignation-|website=[[Business Standard]]|accessdate=2020-07-27}}</ref> In 2018, in an interview with ''[[The Telegraph (Kolkata)|The Telegraph]]'', Verma claimed her husband to be innocent. According to her, she visited the shelter home only once with her husband on the occasion of a programme when she saw the girls cooking in their dirty clothes, but they refused to tell anything on enquiry.<ref name="Telegraph"/>

In the 2020 Bihar Assembly Elections, the Janata Dal (United) party from which Verma had resigned earlier following the cases of alleged involvement of her husband in Muzaffarpur Shelter home case again made her the party candidate to Bihar Assembly from the [[Cheria-Bariarpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Cheria-Bariarpur constituency]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/elections/bihar-assembly/bihar-assembly-election-jdu-offers-ticket-to-manju-verma/article32797658.ece|title=Bihar Assembly election: JD(U) offers ticket to Manju Verma|first=Amarnath|last=Tewary|website=[[The Hindu]]|accessdate=2020-10-07}}</ref>

Verma was defeated in this election by Raj Banshi Mahto of [[Rashtriya Janata Dal]], a former Member of Parliament.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://theprint.in/politics/jdu-ex-minister-manju-varma-trails-rjds-raj-vanshi-mahto-in-begusarai/540632/|title=JDU ex minister Manju Verma trails|website=The Print|accessdate=2020-11-13}}</ref>
==See also==
*[[Renu Kushawaha]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Verma, Manju}}
[[Category:Janata Dal (United) politicians]]
[[Category:People from Begusarai district]]
[[Category:State cabinet ministers of Bihar]]
[[Category:Bihar MLAs 2010–2015]]
[[Category:Bihar MLAs 2015–2020]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Women members of the Bihar Legislative Assembly]]
[[Category:Women state cabinet ministers of India]]

Manju Verma - Revision history

->Citation bot at 20:34, 9 December 2021