Officials could not recognize former Udaipur MLA Preeti Singh Shaktawat, who arrived in veil. Video of conversation with EO in fluent English went viral on social media, the incident became a topic of discussion.
Udaipur/Bhinder: The land of Rajasthan is known for its rich culture, princely history and traditional norms. But such a shocking incident has come to light from Udaipur district of this Marudhara, which has created a stir from the corridors of bureaucracy to the social media. A strange situation arose in the Bhinder Municipality office when a simple looking rural woman wearing the traditional ‘Ghunghat’ entered the office. But as soon as the woman started speaking in ‘fluent English’ from behind the veil in a very sharp tone, the Executive Officer (EO) sitting on the chair in front started sweating. When the real personality hidden behind that veil was exposed, there was a stir in the municipality premises. She was not an ordinary complainant, but a very influential and powerful leader of the area.
Disguise as ‘common citizen’ and make surprise entry into government office
For a long time, there was a ruckus among the public in Bhinder Municipality regarding the allocation of leases and local administrative work. Amidst the continuous complaints of corruption and negligence, Preeti Gajendra Singh Shaktawat, former Congress MLA from Vallabhnagar assembly constituency of Udaipur, chose a method which no one had even imagined to know the ground reality. To test the transparency of the administration, the former MLA, without any frills or security guards, took off her long veil as per the traditional decorum of the local Rajputi culture and disguised herself as a very ordinary village woman, entered the Municipality office for a surprise inspection.
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When ‘Fluent English’ echoed from behind the veil, the officers left their chairs and stood up.
When she entered the office and came directly in front of the Executive Officer (EO), the officer made the mistake of taking her lightly considering her to be a common and less educated rural woman. But the suspense deepened when, while talking about the problems of the suffering people, the veiled woman suddenly started giving the officer’s class in very clear, sharp and highly fluent English. “The EO and other employees present there were completely stunned to hear such English words and legal rules from the mouth of a common rural woman. There was silence in the office and the look on the officer’s face was worth seeing.” When the woman slightly removed the veil from her face while reprimanding the administrative negligence in English, the officers were left in tears. Former Vallabhnagar MLA Preeti Singh Shaktawat was standing in front. Seeing their former MLA in this form, the officer immediately left his chair and stood up and there was a commotion among the rest of the office staff.
Who is Preeti Singh Shaktawat? Belongs to the most powerful political family of Mewar
It may sound strange to hear the echo of English from behind the veil, but if we look at the background of Preeti Singh Shaktawat, it is not surprising. She belongs to one of the most influential and prestigious political families of the Mewar region of Rajasthan:
- Father-in-law’s inheritance: She is the daughter-in-law of former Rajasthan Home Minister and veteran Congress leader late Gulab Singh Shaktawat.
- Husband’s journey: Her husband late Gajendra Singh Shaktawat had also been a two-time MLA from Vallabhnagar and Minister of State for Home in the state government.
- Victory in by-election: After the untimely demise of her husband in January 2021, Preeti Singh entered politics and reached the Assembly after winning a bumper victory in the November 2021 by-election.
- Business Woman: Along with politics, she is highly educated (graduate professional) and also runs the family marble business (Dharani Marbles Pvt. Ltd.) and commercial petrol pump.
Unique coordination of tradition and modernity, flood of praises on social media
This sharp and political style of 50-year-old former MLA Preeti Kunwar has now become a topic of discussion in the entire country. People are praising the fact that despite being so highly educated, managing a business and being an MLA, she also fully respected her local Rajputi culture and the decorum of the veil. His ‘secret mission’ of exposing administrative shortcomings is not only trending heavily on social media, but has also given a strong message to the ineffective officials that they should never make the mistake of considering half of the country’s population sitting behind the veil as weak or illiterate.