Rajkeswur Purryag, better known as Kailash, was born on 12 December 1947 in Camp Fouquereaux, Mauritius. He is an Indo-Mauritian. He is the eldest of a family comprising seven children. His ancestors were natives of Gaya District of Bihar. His great grandfather Lakshman Paryag sailed to Mauritius some 150 years ago to work as Indentured labourers.
Kailash Purryag attended the Shree Shamboonath Government School and later the Mauritius College.
In 1973, Kailash Purryag was sworn in as attorney-at-law i. The same year he joined the Mauritian Labour Party. He became general secretary of the party in 1984 and president in 1995.
Kailash Purryag has been a member of the Labour Party since 1973. He was a member of the Municipal Commission of the Municipal Council of Vacoas-Phoenix from 1974 to 1976. Purryag was elected member of the Legislative Assembly for the first time at the general election held on 20 December 1976. Purryag became Minister of Social Security from January 1980 to June 1982. In 1981, he was appointed as Leader of Delegation by the Government to negotiate adequate compensation for the Ilois Community in 1981 from the British Government. He was elected Member of the Legislative Assembly at the general election held on 21 Augustction held on 21 August 1983 and became Minister of Health from January 1984 to January 1986. He served as Secretary General of the Labour Party from 1987 to 1991 and became President of the Party from March 1991 to March 1996. Purryag was elected Member of the National Assembly at the general election held on 20 December 1995. He became Minister of Economic Planning, Information & Telecommunications from December 1995 to July 1997. He was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Trade from July 1997 to September 2000. On 12 July 2005, he was elected Speaker of the National Assembly and was re-elected as Speaker on 18 May 2010, and remained in that post until 2012.
On 20 July 2012, the National Assembly elected Rajkeswur Purryag as President of Mauritius. The motion was presented by Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam and seconded by Rashid Beebeejaun. Kailash Purryag became the fifth President of Mauritius and took office on 21 July 2012. His first official visit was at the Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam Botanical Garden, where he meditated at the monument of Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, the father of the nation.
Following the victory of the MSM/PSMD/ML alliance led by Sir Anerood Jugnauth in December 2014, he was expected to resign to make way for the alliance's candidate, Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, to assume the Presidency instead. In an official communique from the State House, he confirmed that he made an agreement with Jugnauth to remain as President up to May 2015 to ensure the hand over of power from the Ramgoolam administration to the new government in a climate of stability. He eventually resigned on 29 May 2015.
He is recipient of both highest order merits in Mauritius. He was elevated as Grand Officer of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean (GOSK) on 12 March 1998 and Grand Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean (GCSK) on 12 March 2009. He received the Conferment of Honorary Freedom of the City of Port Louis on 23 August 2007. On 9 January 2013, Purryag received the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award, the highest honour conferred to overseas Indians at the 13th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas
Kailash Purryag is politically driven to serve the people of mauritius. He was elected President of the Republic on 20 July following a motion presented at the National Assembly by the Prime Minister.
Speaking on the career of Purryag as the new President of the Republic, the Prime Minister said that he has an impressive professional and political track record, with an invaluable contribution in all fields of national endeavour in a spirit of service for higher causes.
Quotations:
"My wife and I are deeply honored and privileged to be among you today on this auspicious occasion of the IX Annual Convocation of Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology. Let me first reiterate, on behalf of the Government and people of Mauritius and in my own name, our heartfelt and sincere condolences for the loss of lives and our deepest feelings of sympathy for those who have lost
their dear ones or their personal belongings and assets in the wake of Cyclone Phailin which recently struck the states of Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and other parts of India."
" I am fully alive to the extreme severity of Cyclone Phailin and the untold damage that it has caused to the lives of the people of Odisha, in particular. We are very much aggrieved by the number of people who lost their lives in that tragic event. Although one death is all too many, we are however relieved that the impact on human life has been masterly contained due to the preventive that measures were put in place ahead of the storm by the State Government of Odisha."
Hi is married, and has a child
