Oscar Fernandes | |
---|---|
Director in Young Indian | |
Assumed office 22 January 2011 |
|
Director in The Associated Journals Private Limited | |
Assumed office 17 June 2010 |
|
MP of Rajya Sabha for Karnataka | |
Assumed office 1st July 2010 |
|
Minister for Road Transport and Highways | |
In office 17 June 2013 – 25 May 2014 |
|
Prime Minister | Manmohan Singh |
Preceded by | C. P. Joshi |
Succeeded by | Nitin Gadkari |
Member of Lok Sabha | |
In office 1980–1996 |
|
Personal details | |
Born |
Udupi, Karnataka, India |
27 March 1941
Nationality | India |
Political party | Indian National Congress |
Spouse(s) | Blossom Fernandes |
Children | 2 |
Residence | Doris Rest Haven, Ambalpady, Udupi. |
Oscar Fernandes (born 27 March 1941) is an Indian politician, a senior Indian National Congress leader and was the Union Cabinet Minister for Transport, Road and Highways and Labour and Employment, Government Of India in UPA government. He is one of the closest confident of the present Congress President Sonia Gandhi.One of the major leader in the taking of important decisions of Congress Party he is also the Chairman of Central Election Authority of the All India Congress Committee.He was previously the AICC General Secretary,the Minister of State (Independent charge) of the Ministry of Labour and Employment in Dr. Manmohan Singh's first UPA government in India. He served as Parliamentary Secretary to Rajiv Gandhi. He was elected to the 7th Lok Sabha in 1980 from Udupi constituency in Karnataka. He was re-elected to the Lok Sabha in 1984, 1989, 1991 and 1996 from the same constituency. Later, he was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 1998. He was re-elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2004. He was a Union Minister from 2004–2009, holding a number of portfolios such as Statistics and Programme Implementation, NRI Affairs, Youth and Sports Affairs and Labour and Employment.
Oscar was born to Roque Fernandes and Leonissa M. Fernandes in Udupi. Fernandes was one of 12 children in his family, and grew up with a strong Catholic background. As a child he was an altar boy, and as a youth he was active in Church activities. His family belongs to the Fernandes-Prabhu clan, a Mangalorean Catholic clan from Udyavara in Udupi district. He married Blossom Mathias Prabhu on 26 August 1981 and has one son Oshan and one daughter Oshanie. His son Oshan is married to Frazil Quadros and Oscar's daughter Oshanie is married to Mark Saldanha