15 Facts About Liu Zhijun

Liu Zhijun rose rapidly within the Ministry, eventually heading several regional railway departments and serving as vice-minister before being promoted to the head of the Railway Ministry in 2003.

Liu Zhijun was a figure of national praise until February 2011, when he was arrested and expelled from the Party over allegations of corruption.

Liu Zhijun was convicted and received a death sentence with reprieve in July 2013.

On 14 December 2015, Liu Zhijun's sentence was statutorily commuted to life imprisonment.

Liu Zhijun's father was a farmer, and he grew up in the villages around Hunan.

Liu Zhijun joined the Chinese Communist Party the next year, in August 1973.

Liu Zhijun graduated from the Party School of the CCP in July 1988, majoring in Marxist Philosophy.

Liu Zhijun became a member of the CCP Central Committee during its sixteenth congress, in 2002.

Liu Zhijun was promoted to vice-minister, and later succeeded then-Minister Fu Zhihuan as Minister of Railways in March 2003 at the annual meeting of the National People's Congress.

In January 2005 Liu Zhijun Zhixiang was arrested for embezzlement, bribe-taking, and arranging the killing of a contractor intent on exposing him.

In February 2011 Liu Zhijun was placed under investigation for alleged "severe violations of discipline" by the Chinese Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

Liu Zhijun's dismissal was linked to an earlier corruption case involving Shanxi business magnate Ding Yuxin of Boyou Investment Management Group Ltd.

Liu Zhijun was expelled from the Chinese Communist Party in May 2011 for "severe violations of discipline" and "primary leadership responsibilities for the serious corruption problem within the railway system".

Liu Zhijun was put on trial in 2013 and received a death sentence with reprieve in July 2013.

On 14 December 2015, Liu Zhijun's sentence was commuted to life imprisonment.