Maharashtra's Neela Vikhe Patil elected to Swedish parliament

The Vikhe Patil family, well known in Maharashtra's politics and cooperative sector, is now making a mark on the world stage. Neela Vikhe Patil, 41, daughter of educationist Ashok Vikhe Patil, has been elected to Sweden's parliament. She won from the Stockholm city constituency in the general election held on September 13. Neela is a leader of the Green Party and is now bringing recognition to both India and Maharashtra internationally.

Neela grew up with a grounding in politics and public service. She is the great-granddaughter of Sahakar Maharshi Vitthalrao Vikhe Patil, founder of Asia's first cooperative sugar factory, granddaughter of former union minister the late Balasaheb Vikhe Patil, and niece of Maharashtra Revenue Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil. Elected to Sweden's 349-member parliament, the Riksdag, she has become one of the prominent leaders of Indian origin there.

Neela was born in Sweden, but spent her childhood and early education in Ahilyanagar (Ahmednagar) in Maharashtra. She went on to earn a degree in economics and law along with an MBA from the Gothenburg School of Business, and also completed an MBA from the Universidad Complutense in Madrid. Since 2020 she has been working at the global consulting firm PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) in strategy, management, technology and risk management.

Neela has been an active and influential leader in Sweden's Green Party for the past 25 years. Before entering parliament, she served as special political advisor in the Prime Minister's Office under former Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven, where she handled issues including finance, the tax system and housing. She has also been a council member of Stockholm municipal corporation and currently sits on the election committee of the Stockholm Green Party.

After being elected, Neela expressed her happiness, saying, "I am very happy to represent the country and the city of Stockholm in Sweden's 349-member parliament. I want to do the work that would make my grandfather (Balasaheb Vikhe Patil) proud." She said, "When I was just 15, my grandfather had me read the state budget, and that is where the real foundation of my political journey was laid. In the last days of his life, he used to call me every week." Ashok Vikhe Patil, Neela's father and chairman of the Vikhe Patil Foundation, which runs a chain of educational institutions in Maharashtra, expressed happiness and pride at his daughter's achievement.

Speaking about her role ahead, Neela said, "I want to contribute to a society where every child gets a chance at a better future. I would like to be a voice for those who cannot vote. We all want a country with clean water, rich nature and fewer natural disasters caused by human mistakes." On her attachment to India, she said, "I love India very much and I feel a great sense of belonging with the people here. Many of my close friends are Indian."

In the September 13 election, Sweden's left-leaning opposition parties won a narrow majority. According to the Swedish Election Commission, the four opposition blocs won 176 of the 349 seats in the Riksdag, while the ruling conservative coalition won 173 seats. The Green Party, part of the opposition, focuses mainly on the environment, renewable energy and green politics.