Who Is Margaret Alva? Know All About Opposition's Vice-Presidential Pick

Alva served as the 17th Governor of Goa, 23rd Governor of Gujarat, 4th Governor of Uttarakhand and 20th Governor of Rajasthan until the end of her tenure in August 2014.

Margaret Alva

Source : PTI

New Delhi: Opposition parties on Sunday announced that Senior Congress leader and former Rajasthan governor Margaret Alva will be their vice-presidential candidate. The decision was taken at a meeting that was held at NCP chief Sharad Pawar’s residence. Taking to her Twitter handle, Alva wrote, “It is a privilege and an honour to be nominated as the candidate of the joint opposition for the post of Vice President of India. I accept this nomination with great humility and thank the leaders of the opposition for the faith they’ve put in me.”

It is a privilege and an honour to be nominated as the candidate of the joint opposition for the post of Vice President of India. I accept this nomination with great humility and thank the leaders of the opposition for the faith they’ve put in me.

Jai Hind 🇮🇳

— Margaret Alva (@alva_margaret) July 17, 2022

Born on April 14, 1942 in Mangaluru, Margaret Alva graduated with a BA, LLb from Mt Carmel College and Government Law College in Bengaluru.

She started her professional career as a lawyer. Alva married Niranjan Alva in 1964, with whom she has a daughter and three sons.

Notably, Alva served as the 17th Governor of Goa, 23rd Governor of Gujarat, 4th Governor of Uttarakhand and 20th Governor of Rajasthan until the end of her tenure in August 2014.

Before being appointed governor, Alva was a senior figure in the Indian National Congress and was also the Joint Secretary of the All India Congress Committee (AICC).

Margaret Alva was elected to the Rajya Sabha as a representative of the Congress in 1974. She served a six-year term and was re-elected for a further three six-year terms, in 1980, 1986 and 1992.

It is to be noted that Margaret Alva was elected to the 13th Lok Sabha as an MP in 1999 for the Uttara Kannada constituency where she served a five-year term. Between 2004 and 2009, she also served as General Secretary of the AICC.

In August 2009, she became the first female Governor of Uttarakhand after her resignation from Congress in 2008.

She remained in the post till May 2012 after which time she was appointed Governor of Rajasthan.