Who is Raksha Nikhil Khadse?

Born in 1987, Raksha Nikhil Khadse is an Lok Sabha MP from Raver, Maharashtra and an MoS Youth Affairs & Sports. She first became an MP in 2014 and was the then youngest LS MP along with Heena Gavit.

 

Personal Life

Khadse is widow of late Nikhil Khadse and daughter-in-law of senior Maharashtrian politician Eknath Khadse. She belongs to the Levia Patil community, which is an agrarian OBC caste. Notably, her father-in-law Eknath used to be a BJP heavyweight in Maharashtra until he quit in 2020 and joined NCP(SP). Ahead of 2024 LS polls, Eknath intended to rejoin BJP but his entry has been stalled till now. 

Political Career

Khadse started her career in 2010 as a sarpanch in a village in Jalgaon district. Later, she became a member of the district council before being fielded by the BJP in 2014 LS polls. She is a three-time MP from Raver and in 2024, she defeated her NCP(SP) opponent by a margin of over 3 lakh votes.

 

Her win in 2024 LS polls forced BJP to appoint her as an Union Minister. Also, the Saffron Party hopes to get more traction among the northern Maharashtra's OBC community through Khadse in the upcoming Assembly polls.

 

Notably, BJP will be heavily dependent on its trusted Maharashtrian leaders in the upcoming Assembly polls as the party received a heavy battering from Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) in the 2024 LS polls.