Purriag, Rajkeswur

Rajkesvour Purriag was born on December 12, 1947 in Wacoa-Phoenix . He was the eldest of nine children in a family of immigrants from India . First he studied at a public school, then he graduated from the College of Mauritius, and since 1973 he began to practice law ^[1] . In the same year he began to participate in the political life of the country: he joined the Labor Party . October 8, 1973 married Anita Purriag, they have a daughter and two grandchildren ^[2] . During his visit to India in January 2013 , Purriag visited his ancestral village in Vajitpur, Patna . His great-grandfather Lakshman Paryag sailed to Mauritius about 150 years ago to work as a wage worker ^{[3] [4]} .

Political career

From 1974 to 1976 he was a member of the municipal commission of the Wacoa-Phoenix Municipal Council. As a result of the elections held on December 20, 1976 , Purriagus was elected to Parliament . From January 1980 to June 1982, he served as Minister of Social Security. In 1981, he was appointed head of the government delegation to negotiate with the British government on compensation to the Chagos . He was again elected to parliament on August 21, 1983 , and from January 1984 to January 1986 he was Minister of Health. From 1987 to 1991 - Secretary General, from March 1991 to March 1996 - President of the Labor Party. December 20, 1995 was re-elected to parliament. From December 1995 to July 1997 he was Minister of Economic Planning, Information and Telecommunications. From July 1997 to September 2000 - Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

National Assembly Speaker

On July 12, 2005, Rajkesvour Purriag was elected speaker of the National Assembly and was re-elected on May 18, 2010 ^{[5] [6]} .

On November 7, 2009, a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the CPC , Deputy Chairman of the Standing Committee of the All-China People's Representatives Wang Zhaogo arrived in Port Louis and held talks with Purriagh as speaker of the National Assembly of Mauritius . Wang Zhaogo said that the NPC and the National Assembly of Mauritius have maintained good relations and successfully cooperated for a long time, which helps to strengthen mutual understanding and friendship between the peoples of the two countries, as well as enrich the content of Sino-Mauritian relations. Purriag noted that Wang Zhaogo’s visit to Mauritius indicates that China attaches great importance to the development of friendly relations with Mauritius. He expressed confidence that this visit will provide a powerful incentive for the development of Mauritian-Chinese relations, and said that "Mauritius invariably pursues the policy of one China" ^[7] .

On July 20, 2012 , the Secretary of the National Assembly announced that immediately after his election as president, Rajkesvur Purriag resigned from his post as speaker. ^[8]

Presidential post

As stated in article 28 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Mauritius, the President is elected by the National Assembly on a proposal made by the Prime Minister and supported by a majority vote of the total number of members of the Assembly. On July 20, the National Assembly voted in favor of Rajkesvur Purriaga, nominated by Prime Minister Naveen Ramgulam and supported by Rashid Bibijown ^[8] . Purriag took office as president on July 21, 2012 . He made his first official visit to the Botanical Garden , where he bowed to the monument to Sivusagur Ramgulam ^[9] .

Sedov Sailing Visit

In the framework of the voyage around the world dedicated to the 1150th anniversary of the birth of Russian statehood and the history of the great Russian geographical discoveries, from April 5 to 8, 2013, the Sedov training sailing vessel was in Mauritius ^[10] . The ship arrived in Port Louis a few days after the terrible flood there. In a matter of hours, the two-month rainfall hit the city, killing 10 people. The crew expressed their willingness to take part in the analysis of the rubble ^[11] . On March 5, as part of the celebration of the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Russia and Mauritius, a reception was held on the ship organized by the Russian embassy and the command of the ship. The reception brought together representatives of the leadership of Mauritius, the diplomatic corps, businessmen and a small Russian diaspora ^[12] . The main guest was Rajkesvour Purriag, as President of Mauritius, he stayed on the ship for an hour and a half. Purriag was met aboard by an honor guard and a ceremony with the raising of flags and the performance of anthems of the two countries ^[13] . He expressed gratitude to the Russian sailors for their willingness to help the Mauritian residents in distress. As the ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Mauritius Vyacheslav Nikiforov said :

On April 6 and 7, an open visit to the ship was organized by the Mauritians. In total, over two thousand people visited the ship in two days. On April 7, a ceremony of laying wreaths at the monument to the dead sailors was held in Port Louis, in which Russian Ambassador Vyacheslav Nikiforov, the captain of the Sedov vessel Nikolai Zorchenko , embassy diplomats and the command staff of the ship took part ^[10] .

Cultural Cooperation with Russia

In October 2013, artists from the Moscow troupe of the Classical Russian Ballet came to Mauritius on tour, under the direction of Hassan Usmanov. The Swan Lake , Cinderella and Carmen Suite were shown ^[15] . The importance of this event was indicated by Rajkesvur Purriag, who attended the performances with his family - his wife and granddaughter, and at the end shook hands with the artists ^[16] . He personally thanked the artists and expressed hope that now Russian art will be presented on the island on an ongoing basis ^[17] .

Retirement

After the victory of the opposition in the December 2014 parliamentary elections, Anirud Jagnot, who again became prime minister, expressed his intention to replace the president. Although Puryag was elected before 2017, after consulting with the government, he agreed to voluntarily resign ^[18] . He resigned on May 29, 2015.