Jyotiraditya Scindia of the Scindia (Anglicized from Shinde) dynasty. Scindia's ancestors were originally of the Kunbi{KURMI} community.[29][e]

Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia (born 1 January 1971) is the current titular Maharaja of Gwalior. He is also a politician belonging to the Indian National Congress. He is also a member of the 15th Lok Sabha of India representing the Congress party and a Minister of State, Ministry of Commerce and Industry. He is a descendant of the dynasty belonging to the Scindia Maratha clan that ruled Gwalior State till the creation of the Republic of India, being a grandson of the last princely ruler of Gwalior. In the 26th amendment^[1] to the Constitution of India promulgated in 1971, the Government of India abolished all official symbols of princely India, including titles, privileges, and remuneration (privy purses),^[2] and therefore His Highness Jyotiraditya Scindia is the titular Maharaja with the courtesy title of Highness.

Contents  [hide]  1 Early life 2 Political career 3 Personal life 4 Styles 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Early life

Jyotiraditya was born in Bombay to Madhavrao Scindia and Madhavi Raje Scindia. He studied at Campion School, Mumbai before going on to The Doon School in Dehradun.^[3] He Scindia received a B.A. in Economics in 1993 from Harvard University in the United States and an M.B.A. in 2001 from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, also in the United States.^[4][5] He worked as an investment banker for Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley and also gained some development experience working as an intern with the UN Economic Development Cell.

[edit] Political career

Jyotiraditya Scindia was elected to the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the Indian Parliament) in February 2002 from Guna District - formerly represented by his father - with a margin of victory of more than 450,000 votes. He was re-elected to the 14th Lok Sabha when he won the elections in May 2004. He retained the seat in the 2009 general elections and was inducted in the Cabinet for the first time as Union Minister of State for Commerce & Industry Government of India.
He is the President of the Board of Governors of Scindia School, Gwalior.^[6]
He also serves on the board of governors for Madhav Institute of Technology & Science, Gwalior.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Personal life

Scindia is married to Priyadarshini, who hails from the erstwhile royal Gaekwad family of Baroda. He has two children, a son, Mahanaryaman Scindia, born in November 1995 and a daughter, Ananya, born April 2002.

[edit] Styles

Though the Indian constitution does not formally recognise monarchs, Jyotiraditya Scindia retains the title of titular Maharaja of Gwalior, in a similar style to deposed overseas monarchs.

• 1971-2001- His Highness Yuvaraja Maharaj Shrimant Jyotiraditya Scindia Bahadur
• 1961-2001- His Highness Ali Jah, Umdat ul-Umara, Hisam us-Sultanat, Mukhtar ul-Mulk, Azim ul-Iqtidar, Rafi-us-Shan, Wala Shikoh, Muhtasham-i-Dauran, Maharajadhiraj Maharaja Shrimant Jyotiraditya Scindia Bahadur, Shrinath, Mansur-i-Zaman, Maharaja Scindia of Gwalior

[edit] References

1. ^ "The Constitution (26 Amendment) Act, 1971", indiacode.nic.in (Government of India), 1971, http://indiacode.nic.in/coiweb/amend/amend26.htm, retrieved 9 November 2011 
2. ^ 1. Ramusack, Barbara N. (2004). The Indian princes and their states. Cambridge University Press. p. 278. ISBN 978-0-521-26727-4. http://books.google.com/books?id=Kz1-mtazYqEC&pg=PA278. Retrieved 6 November 2011. , "Through a constitutional amendment passed in 1971, Indira Gandhi stripped the princes of the titles, privy purses and regal privileges which her father's government had granted." (p 278). 2. Naipaul, V. S. (8 April 2003), India: A Wounded Civilization, Random House Digital, Inc., pp. 37–, ISBN 978-1-4000-3075-0, http://books.google.com/books?id=XYeWbmq7pkIC&pg=PT37, retrieved 6 November 2011  Quote: "The princes of India – their number and variety reflecting to a large extent the chaos that had come to the country with the break up of the Mughal empire – had lost real power in the British time. Through generations of idle servitude they had grown to specialize only in style. A bogus, extinguishable glamour: in 1947, with Independence, they had lost their state, and Mrs. Gandhi in 1971 had, without much public outcry, abolished their privy purses and titles." (pp 37–38). 3. Schmidt, Karl J. (1995), An atlas and survey of South Asian history, M.E. Sharpe, p. 78, ISBN 978-1-56324-334-9, http://books.google.com/books?id=FzmkFXSgxqgC&pg=PA78, retrieved 6 November 2011  Quote: "Although the Indian states were alternately requested or forced into union with either India or Pakistan, the real death of princely India came when the Twenty-sixth Amendment Act (1971) abolished the princes' titles, privileges, and privy purses." (page 78). 4. Breckenridge, Carol Appadurai (1995), Consuming modernity: public culture in a South Asian world, U of Minnesota Press, pp. 84–, ISBN 978-0-8166-2306-8, http://books.google.com/books?id=LN4MN35b-r4C&pg=PA84, retrieved 6 November 2011  Quote: "The third stage in the political evolution of the princes from rulers to citizens occurred in 1971, when the constitution ceased to recognize them as princes and their privy purses, titles, and special privileges were abolished." (page 84). 5. Guha, Ramachandra (5 August 2008), India After Gandhi: The History of the World's Largest Democracy, HarperCollins, pp. 441–, ISBN 978-0-06-095858-9, http://books.google.com/books?id=2fvd-CaFdqYC&pg=PA441, retrieved 6 November 2011  Quote: "Her success at the polls emboldened Mrs. Gandhi to act decisively against the princes. Through 1971, the two sides tried and failed to find a settlement. The princes were willing to forgo their privy purses, but hoped at least to save their titles. But with her overwhelming majority in Parliament, the prime minister had no need to compromise. On 2 December she introduced a bill to amend the constitution and abolish all princely privileges. It was passed in the Lok Sabha by 381 votes to six, and in the Rajya Sabha by 167 votes to seven. In her own speech, the prime minister invited 'the princes to join the elite of the modern age, the elite which earns respect by its talent, energy and contribution to human progress, all of which can only be done when we work together as equals without regarding anybody as of special status.' " (page 441). 6. Cheesman, David (1997). Landlord power and rural indebtedness in colonial Sind, 1865-1901. London: Routledge. pp. 10–. ISBN 978-0-7007-0470-5. http://books.google.com/books?id=rtBi1MgVD0AC&pg=PA10. Retrieved 6 November 2011.  Quote: "The Indian princes survived the British Raj by only a few years. The Indian republic stripped them of their powers and then their titles." (page 10). 7. Merriam-Webster, Inc (1997), Merriam-Webster's geographical dictionary, Merriam-Webster, pp. 520–, ISBN 978-0-87779-546-9, http://books.google.com/books?id=Co_VIPIJerIC&pg=PA520, retrieved 6 November 2011  Quote: "Indian States: "Various (formerly) semi-independent areas in India ruled by native princes .... Under British rule ... administered by residents assisted by political agents. Titles and remaining privileges of princes abolished by Indian government 1971." (page 520). 8. Ward, Philip (September 1989), Northern India, Rajasthan, Agra, Delhi: a travel guide, Pelican Publishing, pp. 91–, ISBN 978-0-88289-753-0, http://books.google.com/books?id=KubCD2jHjEsC&pg=PA91, retrieved 6 November 2011  Quote: "A monarchy is only as good as the reigning monarch: thus it is with the princely states. Once they seemed immutable, invincible. In 1971 they were "derecognized," their privileges, privy purses and titles all abolished at a stroke" (page 91)
3. ^ "The evolution of Honorable Shri. Jyotiraditya Scindia". Times of India. 2002-06-02. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/11710390.cms. Retrieved 2009-06-21. 
4. ^ "Honorable Shri. Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia - Minister of State for Commerce & Industry". Department of Commerce, Government of India. http://www.commerce.nic.in/bio/stateminister.asp. Retrieved 2011-03-08. 
5. ^ "Jyotiraditya M. Scindia - Minister of State for Commerce & Industry". Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion, Government of India. http://www.dipp.nic.in/CV_MOS.htm. Retrieved 2011-03-08. 
6. ^ "Education to excel: Scindia School in Gwalior is rated as one of the finest public schools for boys". The Tribune. May 23, 2004. http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040523/spectrum/main3.htm. 

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