Sumatitai Suklikar

Sumati Suklikar (24 December 1923 - 22 February 2011),was an Indian politician. She was a leader of Bharatiya Janata Party and its precursor Bharatiya Jana Sangh, and was from Nagpur, Maharashtra.^[1] She contested elections for Maharashtra Legislative Assembly four times in 1960s and 1970s.^[2] She died on 22 February 2011 due to old age.^[3]

She had a brother-like relation with the veteran Communist Party of India leader A. B. Bardhan from Nagpur. Although they contested elections against each other. Sumatitai was like an elder sister to Bardhan.^[4] In 2018, Maharashtra state government launched a scheme named 'Sumatibai Suklikar Yojana' in Sumati-bai's memory to effect social upliftment of women in rural parts of the state.^[5]

Alankar Talkies Chowk, Ambazari Road, Nagpur, Maharashtra was renamed after her as "Lokmata Sumatitai Suklikar Chowk" and a copper mural was installed there as a tribute to her social and political work. It was inaugurated by the then" Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari" on 18 June 2023.

References

1. "Former Pondicherry governor Rajani Rai passes away". 30 August 2013 – via The Economic Times - The Times of India.
2. "Madhya Pradesh Assembly Election Results in 1967". www.elections.in. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
3. "Sumatitai Sukalikar passes away at 88". 23 February 2011 – via The Economic Times - The Times of India.
4. "Weekly Sadhana" (PDF) (in Hindi). Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 April 2016.
5. "Asmita scheme for rural areas".