Jai Prakash

For the Indian Independence leader, known as JP, see Jayaprakash Narayan. For the Indian Olympic wrestler, see Jai Prakash (wrestler).

Not to be confused with Jai Prakash Nishad.

Jai Prakash (born 16 April 1958), also known as Jai Prakash Rawat is an Indian politician from Uttar Pradesh and a member of the Bhartiya Janata Party.^[1][2] He was re-elected in 2024 as the BJP Member of Parliament from Hardoi Lok Sabha.^[1] Having a long political career, he has won Lok Sabha elections five times and was once elected as a Rajya Sabha member.^[1]

Jai Prakash Rawat
Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha
Incumbent
Assumed office 2019
Preceded by	Anshul Verma
Constituency	Hardoi
In office 2004–2009
Preceded by	Reena Choudhary
Succeeded by	Sushila Saroj
Constituency	Mohanlalganj
In office 1999–2004
Preceded by	Usha Verma
Succeeded by	Usha Verma
Constituency	Hardoi
In office 1991–1998
Preceded by	Chand Ram
Succeeded by	Usha Verma
Constituency	Hardoi
Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha
In office 4 August 2009 – 2 April 2012
Preceded by	Balihari
Constituency	Uttar Pradesh
Personal details
Born	(1958-04-16) 16 April 1958 (age 67) Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, India
Political party	Bharatiya Janata Party (2018-) (till 2004)
Other political affiliations	Samajwadi Party (2012-18) (2004-08) Bahujan Samaj Party (2008-12)
Spouse	Jyoti Prakash ​ (m. 1985)​
Children	2 sons
Parents	Jagannath Prasad (father) Vidyawati (mother)
Residence	Unnao
Education	Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of Laws
Alma mater	Lucknow University

In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Jai Prakash won by a margin of 27,856 against Samajwadi Party's Usha Verma in the Hardoi Lok Sabha constituency, while in the previous 2019 elections, Jai Prakash had defeated the SP candidate by a comfortable 1,32,474 votes in the same constituency.^[3]

Early life and education

Jai Prakash was born in 1958 to the late Shri Jagannath Prasad and Smt Vidyawati in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh.^[1] He is a graduate who completed his bachelor in Arts and also studied law (LLB) from Lucknow University, Uttar Pradesh.^[1]

Political career

He entered active politics in Uttar Pradesh, fought several Lok Sabha elections, and became a member of parliament from the Mohanlalganj Lok Sabha Constituency. Subsequently, he became the BJP candidate for the nearby Hardoi constituency in 2019.^[1]

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Jai Prakash garnered 5,68,143 votes, and defeated SP's Usha Verma by a comfortable 1,32,474 votes in the Hardoi constituency.^[3] Jai Prakash was able to secure the BJP candidacy again in 2024 elections from Hardoi.^[4]

In the 2024 elections, Jai Prakash was up against a stiff challenge from the SP candidate, while the BSP candidate was also a factor in the Hardoi constituency, which has diverse demographics including an important SC community.^[5] Jai Prakash was among the few sitting BJP MPs from Uttar Pradesh who were able to retain their seats in the 2024 elections.^[3]