1. Pravind Kumar Jugnauth was born on 25 December 1961 and is a Mauritian politician who is the current leader of the Militant Socialist Movement.
31 Facts About Pravind Jugnauth
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Pravind Jugnauth became Prime Minister of Mauritius in 2017, following the retirement of his father, Aneerood Jugnauth.
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Pravind Jugnauth then became Prime Minister again in the 2019 general election following the victory of his coalition, L'Alliance Morisien and remained as PM until 2024, where he and his coalition, L'Alliance Lepep faced a humiliating defeat in the Mauritius 2024 General Elections.
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Pravind Jugnauth was born to Anerood Jugnauth, former President and prime minister of Mauritius, and Sarojini Ballah, a schoolteacher.
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Pravind Jugnauth then went on to study law at the University of Buckingham, thus joining the Lincoln's Inn, and became a barrister.
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Pravind Jugnauth married Kobita Ramdanee in 1992 and is the father of three daughters: Sonika, Sonali and Sara.
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Pravind Jugnauth entered the political arena in 1987 and officially joined the MSM in 1990.
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Pravind Jugnauth encouraged hydroponics and other modern methods of agricultural production as well as agricultural biotechnology research.
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Pravind Jugnauth created a National Agricultural Biotechnology Institute and Food Technology Laboratory in Mauritius and later launched the Small Planters Welfare Fund.
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Pravind Jugnauth increased subsidies on basic commodities and gave salary compensations well above inflation rates in two successive years.
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Pravind Jugnauth launched a project to make Mauritius a Duty Free Island.
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In 2006 MP Ashok Jugnauth left the MSM party and formed a new party following a dispute with Pravind Jugnauth regarding the leadership of the party.
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At that time Pravind Jugnauth was not an elected member of Parliament but still held leadership of the MSM.
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Pravind Jugnauth's victory paved the way for the next alliance during the 2010 general elections.
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Pravind Jugnauth served as Leader of the Opposition from September to December 2014.
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Pravind Jugnauth was appointed Minister of Information Technology following the Alliance Lepep's victory.
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Pravind Jugnauth served as PM of Mauritius during the second half of the Alliance Lepep's mandate which concluded with general elections in November 2019.
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In October 2020, Pravind Jugnauth described the British and American governments as "hypocrites" and "champions of double talk" over their response to the dispute.
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Pravind Jugnauth conceded his government losing in the 2024 Mauritian general election.
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Pravind Jugnauth was arrested on charges of "conflict of interest".
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On 30 June 2015 Pravind Jugnauth was found guilty under Article 13 of the Prevention Of Corruption Act 2002.
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Pravind Jugnauth was sentenced by the Intermediate court of Mauritius for 1 year of imprisonment.
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On 26 December 2012 Pravind Jugnauth was arrested and interrogated by Central CID on charges of sedition.
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Pravind Jugnauth's arrest was decried as being arbitrary and a form of harassment by Navin Ramgoolam, as the previous application of the anti-sedition law dated back to 1972.
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Pravind Jugnauth's role became contentious when it was revealed that key information regarding the deal was either ignored or dismissed at the highest levels.
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When initially questioned, Pravind Jugnauth was irritated and showed signs of frustration to the journalists.
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Pravind Jugnauth made another press appearance later and denied these allegations, insisting the Indian team's visit was part of a legitimate survey.
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When questioned by journalists, Pravind Jugnauth initially declared that the recordings were AI based and spreaded falsehoods, however with public and media pressure, the AI thesis was eventually proven to be very weak.
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On 1 November 2024, following the Moustass Leaks Scandal, the Prime Minister's Office under Pravind Jugnauth, took the decision to block social media nationwide and ordered the Information and Communications Technology Authority to give directives to all Telecommunication Operators such as My.
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On 16 February 2025, Pravind Jugnauth was arrested for money laundering but was released later in the day after posting bail.
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Pravind Jugnauth was honoured Doctor from the University of Buckingham with an Honoris Causa in 2005.