Manju Kumari Sinha (Nitish Kumar’s

Some Lesser Known Facts About Manju Kumari Sinha

• Manju Kumari Sinha was born and grew up in Sewdah, Nalanda district, Bihar.

• Kumari was raised in a family of educators.

• She was the eldest among all her siblings.

• Manju completed her initial education in Swedah and later moved to Patna for higher studies.

• While studying at the Magadh Mahila College, Patna, she got engaged to Nitish Kumar.

• In an interview, Nitish Kumar Kumar mentioned that neither of them had met before, as it was fixed by their relatives.

  

• Their marriage was also an inter-caste marriage since Manju was a Kayastha, while her husband, Nitish, belongs to the OBC category.

  

• When their wedding cards were printed, Manju’s husband came to know that Rs 22,000 was being given to his family during one of the pre-marriage rituals. Since he had promised never to take dowry, he immediately objected and told both families he would not accept any money.

• Later, Manju and her husband decided to do a court marriage without any fancy arrangements. The wedding cards were printed again as the date and venue were changed.

  

• When Manju got married, she was still a student and pursuing her bachelor’s degree from Magadh Mahila College, Patna.

• After marriage, she stayed for some time with her in-laws and then returned to Patna to complete her studies.

• In 1982, Manju Kumari Sinha got a job at a government school. Her first appointment was at the high school in her maternal home, Sewdah.

• After her appointment, Manju and her son lived in Sewdah, while her husband used to live sometimes in Patna and sometimes in Bakhtiyarpur.

• In 1985, Manju got her transfer from Swedah to Patna, and they all started living together.

• In 1989, when her husband won the Lok Sabha election and moved to New Delhi, Manju also got her deputation to the Bihar Information Centre, New Delhi.

• However, after some time, Nitish Kumar faced backlash for calling his wife to New Delhi. He then wrote a letter to the then Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and asked for Manju’s deputation. Soon, Manju returned to Patna.

• In 2005, Manju’s husband became the Chief Minister of Bihar, and they started living together.

• Being the wife of the CM, she didn’t leave her teaching job and maintained a low-key profile.

• In 2007, Manju was diagnosed with acute pneumonia. Her husband took her to Max Hospital, New Delhi. Unfortunately, she passed away on 14 May 2007.

• At the time of her death, Manju had five years left until her retirement. She was supposed to retire in 2012.

• In her memory, her husband built the Manju Kumari Memorial Park and monument in Kankarbagh, Patna. Every year, on her birth and death anniversaries, he visits the memorial and offers flowers.