Anurag Thakur

Anurag Singh Thakur was born on October 24, 1974, in Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh, the son of former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal. Educated at Doaba College, Jalandhar, he demonstrated an early passion for sports and public policy, representing Himachal Pradesh in first-class cricket and later pioneering the construction of the world-famous HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala.

Elected to the 14th Lok Sabha in a 2008 by-election at the age of thirty-three, Thakur has won five consecutive parliamentary elections from Hamirpur. As President of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) from 2010 to 2016, he spearheaded nationwide youth mobilization campaigns. In 2016, he was elected President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), leading initiatives to expand grassroots infrastructure and women's cricket.

In Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Cabinet, Thakur served as Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs (2019–2021) and was subsequently elevated to Cabinet rank as Minister for Information and Broadcasting and Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports (2021–2024). During his ministerial tenure, he introduced major modernizing media guidelines, expanded the Khelo India games, and steered India to historic medal tallies at the Tokyo Olympics and Hangzhou Asian Games. He holds a regular commission as a Captain in the Territorial Army.