Buddhist MPs in India: Buddhist Members of Parliament in the 18th Lok Sabha (2024–2029)

Last Updated on 28 September 2026 by Sandesh Hiwale

The 18th Lok Sabha elections were held in 2024. Several Buddhist candidates contested, and a few were elected as Members of Parliament (MPs). This article provides a clear overview of the Buddhist MPs in the 18th Lok Sabha, along with related details on Buddhist politicians in India and Maharashtra.

Buddhist MPs in Lok Sabha

Wikipedia has articles listing American Members of Congress by religion. However, Wikipedia does not have even a single page or article that lists Indian parliamentarians by religion.

Results of the 18th Lok Sabha elections were declared in June 2024. Candidates were elected to 543 seats. MPs from various religions entered Parliament. Hindus form the largest group, followed by Muslims. Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, and Jain MPs are also present.

Three Buddhist MPs with confirmed religious identity were elected. There may be a few more whose Buddhist identity is not publicly confirmed.

Based on my research, more than 50 Buddhist MPs have been elected to the Lok Sabha between 1947 and 2024. The actual number could be higher because the religious identity of many is not clearly documented.

A Hindustan Times report on religion-wise candidates and MPs of the BJP-led NDA and Congress-led INDIA alliances claimed that only 0.2% (one) Buddhist candidate was fielded by both alliances and that no Buddhist MP was elected. These figures are incorrect. The actual picture is different.

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Buddhist Members of Parliament in 18th Lok Sabha

Muslim, Christian, and Sikh MPs are often identifiable by name. This is not always true for Buddhists. Hindu and Buddhist names frequently look similar, making identification harder.

The nomination forms of candidates contesting Lok Sabha elections do not require or even mention the recording of religion. If religion had been a mandatory or even optional field, many more Buddhist candidates would have been identified.

This article focuses on verified Buddhist MPs and candidates in the current Lok Sabha, with special attention to Buddhist politicians in Maharashtra and India.

Buddhist Candidates in 2024 Elections

Confirmed Buddhist candidates in the 18th Lok Sabha elections included:

NDA

Shiv Sena – Yamini Jadhav (Mumbai South, Maharashtra)
BJP – Sudhakar Shringare (Latur (SC), Maharashtra)
BJP – Kiren Rijiju (West Arunachal)
BJP – Tashi Gyalson (Ladakh)

INDIA

Congress – Varsha Gaikwad (Mumbai North Central)
Congress – Balwant Wankhede (Amravati (SC), Maharashtra)
Congress – Tsering Namgyal (Ladakh)
SP – Nawal Shakya (Farrukhabad, UP)

Both NDA and INDIA fielded about 0.7% (four each) Buddhist candidates. Of these eight, only three won.

In the Buddhist-majority Ladakh constituency, both Congress and BJP fielded Buddhist candidates. As a result, Buddhist votes got divided, and an independent candidate, a Muslim, won the seat.

Adv. Prakash Ambedkar, grandson of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar and president of Vanchit Bahujan Aaghadi, contested independently from Akola in Maharashtra and lost. Had he joined the Mahavikas Aghadi (INDIA alliance), he would likely have won, adding another Buddhist MP.

List of Buddhist MPs (2024-29)

There are three verified Buddhist Members of Parliament in the 18th Lok Sabha (2024-2029). Additional unidentified Buddhist MPs may exist.

List of Buddhist MPs in the 18th Lok Sabha

BJP – Kiren Rijiju (West Arunachal)
Congress – Varsha Gaikwad (Mumbai North Central)
Congress – Balwant Wankhede (Amravati (SC))

Kiren Rijiju has been elected four times and currently serves as a Union Cabinet Minister. Varsha Gaikwad and Balwant Wankhede are first-time MPs.

NDA has 0.2% (one) Buddhist MP. INDIA has 0.4% (two). These are important Buddhist politicians in India and include two Buddhist MPs from Maharashtra.

Kiren Rijiju

Kiren Rijiju is the 28th Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and 7th Minister of Minority Affairs in the Government of India (since June 2024). He is the first Buddhist to head the Ministry of Minority Affairs.

Born on 19 November 1971 into a Buddhist family in Nakhu near Nafra, West Kameng district, Arunachal Pradesh, he belongs to a Scheduled Tribe community. He has won the West Arunachal Lok Sabha seat in 2004, 2014, 2019, and 2024.

He has held ministerial positions seven times (four as Cabinet Minister and three as Minister of State).

Varsha Gaikwad

Professor Varsha Eknath Gaikwad is President of the Mumbai Regional Congress Committee. She won the Mumbai North Central seat in 2024, defeating BJP candidate and senior lawyer Ujjwal Nikam by 16,514 votes. The seat had been with the BJP for the previous ten years.

At the time of the election she was an MLA. She had won the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly seat from Dharavi four consecutive times (2004, 2009, 2014, and 2019).

She is the only Scheduled Caste candidate from Maharashtra elected as an MP from a general (unreserved) seat. Her father, Eknath Gaikwad, had earlier won the same Lok Sabha constituency in 2004.

Earlier Buddhist MPs from this constituency include Gopal Mane (Scheduled Castes Federation, 1957) and Ramdas Athawale (Republican Party of India, 1998). Varsha Gaikwad is a prominent Buddhist MP in Maharashtra and one of the notable Buddhist politicians in India.

Balwant Wankhede

In Amravati, Maharashtra, Congress candidate and then sitting MLA Balwant Baswant Wankhede defeated sitting MP and BJP candidate Navneet Kaur Rana by 19,731 votes.

He is a follower of Buddhism. He served as MLA from Daryapur (2019-2024). His political journey progressed from gram panchayat member and sarpanch to Chairman of Amravati District Council, then MLA, and now MP.

Amravati is a Scheduled Caste reserved seat. Navneet Kaur Rana belongs to the Mochi/Chamar community (Sikh or Hindu by religion). Balwant Wankhede belongs to the Mahar community and follows Buddhism. He is a key Buddhist MP in Maharashtra.

Non-Buddhist MPs (Often Mistaken as Buddhists)

Some MPs, especially Dalit leaders, are sometimes assumed to be Buddhist but are not.

Confirmed non-Buddhist examples:

ASP(KR) – Chandrashekhar Azad (Nagina, Uttar Pradesh)
VCK – Thol. Thirumavalavan (Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu)

Chandrashekhar Azad and Thol. Thirumavalavan are both Ambedkarites, but they are not Buddhists.

Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad, who said “Namo Buddhay” while taking oath in Parliament, has described himself as an atheist and non-religious person who does not believe in God or religion (interview, September 2018). In his personal life he appears closer to the Ravidassia religion, which he views as more egalitarian (podcast, February 2025).

Thol. Thirumavalavan has stated in an interview that he believes in Christianity.

Possible Buddhist MPs (Unconfirmed)

A few MPs in the 2024 Lok Sabha are sometimes considered Buddhist, though their religious identity is not publicly confirmed. Some may be Buddhist; others may not.

Congress – Radhakrishna (Gulbarga, Karnataka), Mallikarjun Kharge’s son-in-law
VCK – Ravikumar (Villupuram, Tamil Nadu)
BJP – Arjun Ram Meghwal (Bikaner, Rajasthan)
SP – R. K. Choudhary (Mohanlalganj, UP)
Congress – Sashikant Senthil (Tiruvallur, Tamil Nadu)
BJP – Tapir Gao (East Arunachal)
AD(S) – Anupriya Patel (Mirzapur, UP)
Congress – Sanjana Jatav (Bharatpur, Rajasthan)
Congress – Bhajan Lal Jatav (Karauli-Dholpur, Rajasthan)

Rahul Gandhi follows Buddhist philosophy but has not publicly described himself as a Buddhist. His sister Priyanka Gandhi also engages with Buddhist ideas but does not call herself a Buddhist. This is a personal choice and is perfectly valid.

Buddhist MPs in the 17th Lok Sabha

In the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-2024) there were five Buddhist MPs (about 0.9%):

BJP – Srinivasa Prasad, Chamarajanagar (SC), Karnataka
BJP – Sudhakar Shringare, Latur (SC), Maharashtra
BJP – Kiren Rijiju, West Arunachal
BJP – Jamyang Namgyal, Ladakh
SP – Sanghmitra Maurya, Badaun, Uttar Pradesh

Buddhist MPs in Rajya Sabha

There are three Buddhist MPs in the Rajya Sabha: Mallikarjun Kharge, Ramdas Athawale, and Chandrakant Handore. All three belong to Scheduled Castes.

Kharge is Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and National President of the Congress. Handore is a Congress leader from Maharashtra. Athawale is President of the Republican Party of India (A) and a Minister of State in the Central Government.

As in the Lok Sabha, the Rajya Sabha has two Buddhist MPs from the INDIA alliance and one from the NDA. These are among the well-known Buddhist politicians in India and Maharashtra.

This article was originally published on 2 July 2024 and was updated and republished on 19 September 2026.

Kind regards
If you know of any other current Buddhist MP(s), please share the name(s) along with a clear reference that confirms their religious identity.

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FAQs

Who are some famous Buddhist politicians in India?
Prominent examples include Kiren Rijiju (Union Minister), Varsha Gaikwad and Balwant Wankhede (both first-time MPs from Maharashtra in the 18th Lok Sabha), Ramdas Athawale (Rajya Sabha MP and Minister of State), Mallikarjun Kharge (Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha), and Chandrakant Handore (Rajya Sabha). Earlier figures and candidates such as Prakash Ambedkar have also been active in politics. These individuals represent Buddhist politicians in India, including several Buddhist MPs in Maharashtra and Buddhist MPs in Lok Sabha.

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