Om Parkash Soni, widely known as OP Soni, is a senior Indian National Congress politician from Amritsar who served as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab from 20 September 2021 to 16 March 2022 in the government of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi. A five-time Member of the Legislative Assembly and Amritsar’s first Mayor, he is one of the most prominent Hindu faces of the Punjab Congress in the Majha region. He represented the Amritsar West constituency from 1997 to 2012 and the Amritsar Central constituency from 2012 to 2022, holding Cabinet portfolios including School Education, Health and Family Welfare, and Medical Education and Research across his career.
Om Parkash Soni Biography, Wiki
| Field | Details |
| Full Name | Om Parkash Soni (popularly known as OP Soni) |
| Date of Birth | 3 July 1957 |
| Age (2026) | 68 years |
| Birthplace | Bhilowal Pakka village, Amritsar district, Punjab, India |
| Hometown | Amritsar, Punjab; Sector 28-A, Chandigarh |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Caste or Community | Soni (Hindu trading community) |
| Zodiac Sign | Cancer |
| Height | Not publicly confirmed |
| Weight | Not publicly confirmed |
| Eye Colour | Not publicly confirmed |
| Hair Colour | Not publicly confirmed |
| Profession | Politician |
| Known For | Former Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab (2021 to 2022), five-time MLA, Amritsar’s first Mayor, former Punjab Health and School Education Minister |
| Father’s Name | Jagat Mitter Soni |
| Mother’s Name | Prem Soni |
| Siblings | Not publicly confirmed |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Wife | Suman Soni |
| Children | Vikas Soni (son) |
| School | Government Senior Secondary School, Lopoke, Punjab |
| College or University | Not publicly confirmed |
| Degree or Qualification | 10th Pass |
| Political Party | Indian National Congress (INC) |
| Current Position or Role | Congress leader, Amritsar; former Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab; former five-time MLA |
| Net Worth (estimated) | Approximately Rs 18.28 crore (declared assets, 2022 EC affidavit, per Our Neta) |
| Monthly Income (estimated) | Not publicly confirmed |
| Twitter/X | Not publicly confirmed |
| Not publicly confirmed | |
| Not publicly confirmed | |
| YouTube | Not publicly confirmed |
| Official Website | Not publicly confirmed |
Om Parkash Soni Election History
| Year | Constituency | Party | Result | Votes | Notes |
| 1997 | Amritsar West, Amritsar | Independent | Won | Not publicly confirmed | First MLA win as an Independent |
| 2002 | Amritsar West, Amritsar | INC | Won | Not publicly confirmed | Re-elected |
| 2007 | Amritsar West, Amritsar | INC | Won | Not publicly confirmed | Third consecutive win |
| 2009 | Amritsar, Lok Sabha | INC | Lost | Not publicly confirmed | Lost to BJP’s Navjot Singh Sidhu by 6,858 votes |
| 2012 | Amritsar Central, Amritsar | INC | Won | Not publicly confirmed | Won from new constituency |
| 2017 | Amritsar Central, Amritsar | INC | Won | Not publicly confirmed | Defeated BJP’s Tarun Chugh by 21,116 votes |
| 2022 | Amritsar Central, Amritsar | INC | Lost | Not publicly confirmed | Lost in AAP wave while serving as Deputy CM |
Om Parkash Soni Events
| Year | Event |
| 3 July 1957 | Born in Bhilowal Pakka village, Amritsar district, Punjab |
| 1991 | Joined the Indian National Congress |
| 25 June 1991 | Elected first Mayor of Amritsar Municipal Corporation after reorganisation into 50 wards |
| 1997 | Elected MLA from Amritsar West as an Independent candidate |
| 2002 | Re-elected MLA from Amritsar West on a Congress ticket |
| 2007 | Won Amritsar West for a third consecutive time |
| 2009 | Contested Amritsar Lok Sabha seat; lost to BJP’s Navjot Singh Sidhu by 6,858 votes |
| 2012 | Elected MLA from Amritsar Central |
| 2016 | Among 42 INC MLAs who submitted resignations over the Supreme Court’s SYL canal ruling |
| 2017 | Re-elected MLA from Amritsar Central; defeated BJP’s Tarun Chugh by 21,116 votes |
| April 2018 | Appointed Cabinet Minister; given charge of School Education department |
| 2019 | Portfolio changed to Medical Education and Research; protested the reshuffle |
| 20 September 2021 | Sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab under CM Charanjit Singh Channi; held Health and Family Welfare portfolio |
| 16 March 2022 | Term as Deputy CM ended after AAP won the 2022 Punjab election |
| July 2023 | Arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau in a disproportionate assets case |
| 2023 onwards | Enforcement Directorate began a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act; later granted bail |
Om Parkash Soni Early Life and Family
Om Parkash Soni was born on 3 July 1957 in Bhilowal Pakka village in Amritsar district, Punjab. He completed his schooling at Government Senior Secondary School, Lopoke, Punjab. He belongs to the Soni community, a Hindu trading community, and grew up to become one of the most prominent Hindu political figures in the Sikh-majority Majha region of Punjab.His father is Jagat Mitter Soni, and his mother is Prem Soni.
Om Parkash Soni Father
His father’s name is Jagat Mitter Soni, as confirmed by Wikipedia and WikiBio.
Om Parkash Soni Mother
His mother’s name is Prem Soni, as confirmed by WikiBio.
Om Parkash Soni Siblings and Family Background
Details about siblings are not publicly confirmed. He is married to Suman Soni, and the couple have a son named Vikas Soni. He resides at House No. 44, Sector 28-A, Chandigarh, alongside his Amritsar base.
Om Parkash Soni Education
Om Parkash Soni completed his schooling at Government Senior Secondary School, Lopoke, Punjab. His Election Commission affidavit and Our Neta both categorise his educational qualification as 10th Pass.
Om Parkash Soni Career
Om Parkash Soni built one of the longest continuous political careers in Amritsar, spanning more than three decades from municipal leadership to the Deputy Chief Ministership of Punjab.
Om Parkash Soni as Amritsar’s First Mayor
Om Parkash Soni joined the Congress in 1991 and was elected the first Mayor of the Amritsar Municipal Corporation on 25 June 1991, following the reorganisation of the city into 50 wards. His mayoral tenure focused on municipal development, building a base among Amritsar’s Hindu voters and laying the foundation for his transition to state-level politics.
Om Parkash Soni as Punjab Minister and Deputy Chief Minister
After winning multiple Assembly terms, Om Parkash Soni was appointed a Cabinet Minister in April 2018, taking charge of the School Education department. In 2019, his portfolio was changed to Medical Education and Research, a reshuffle he publicly protested by not joining his office for over two weeks. His political career reached its peak on 20 September 2021, when he was sworn in as one of two Deputy Chief Ministers of Punjab, alongside Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, under Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi. As Deputy CM he also held the Health and Family Welfare portfolio. He served in the role until the Channi government’s term ended after the AAP swept the 2022 Punjab election.
Om Parkash Soni Political Journey and Elections
Om Parkash Soni entered electoral politics by winning the Amritsar West Assembly seat in 1997 as an Independent candidate. He retained the seat as a Congress candidate in 2002 and 2007, winning three consecutive terms from Amritsar West. In 2009, he contested the Amritsar Lok Sabha seat against the BJP’s Navjot Singh Sidhu but lost by a narrow margin of 6,858 votes. He subsequently challenged the result in the Punjab and Haryana High Court and filed a defamation case against Sidhu after Sidhu accused him of involvement in drug peddling, a case he withdrew in 2017 when Sidhu joined the Congress.
After constituency delimitation, he moved to the Amritsar Central seat, winning it in 2012 and again in 2017, the latter by defeating BJP’s Tarun Chugh by 21,116 votes, taking his MLA tally to five terms across two constituencies. He was among the 42 Congress MLAs who submitted their resignations in 2016 in protest against the Supreme Court’s SYL water canal ruling.
He was overlooked for a Cabinet post when Amarinder Singh formed his government in 2017, but was inducted as School Education Minister in April 2018. His elevation to Deputy Chief Minister in September 2021 marked the high point of his career, a recognition of his standing as a senior Hindu Congress leader in Punjab. However, in the 2022 election, he lost the Amritsar Central seat amid the AAP wave that swept 92 of 117 seats statewide, an unusual defeat for a sitting Deputy Chief Minister.
Om Parkash Soni Religion and Community
What is Om Parkash Soni Religion
Om Parkash Soni practises Hinduism, as confirmed by WikiBio, and is widely regarded as one of the prominent Hindu faces of the Punjab Congress.
What is Om Parkash Soni Caste or Community
He belongs to the Soni community, a Hindu trading community in Punjab. His prominence as a Hindu leader in the Sikh-majority Majha region has been a defining feature of his political identity.
Om Parkash Soni Personal Life and Relationships
Is Om Parkash Soni Married
Yes, Om Parkash Soni is married.
Om Parkash Soni Wife
His wife is Suman Soni, as confirmed by Wikipedia and WikiBio.
Om Parkash Soni Children
He and Suman Soni have a son named Vikas Soni. In 2018, when the Punjab government ordered mandatory drug testing of government employees, Soni and his son Vikas Soni publicly gave their urine samples for testing as a demonstration of support for the campaign.
Om Parkash Soni Height, Weight and Physical Appearance
His height, weight, eye colour, and hair colour are not publicly disclosed in any official listed or verified media source.
Om Parkash Soni Net Worth and Earnings
Om Parkash Soni declared total assets of approximately Rs 18,28,65,906 (approximately Rs 18.28 crore) in his 2022 Election Commission filing, with financial liabilities of approximately Rs 1,00,68,157 (approximately Rs 1.01 crore), per the Our Neta summary of his affidavit. The full itemised breakdown of his 2022 movable and immovable assets was not independently accessible in the source material reviewed. His earlier filings show a lower asset base, and the substantial figure declared in 2022 later became central to the Vigilance Bureau’s disproportionate assets investigation against him. Readers seeking complete financial disclosure details are encouraged to consult the original MyNeta affidavit pages for his 2022 Punjab Assembly filing directly.
| Source | Estimated Amount |
| Total declared assets (2022 EC filing, per Our Neta) | Rs 18,28,65,906 |
| Declared liabilities (2022, per Our Neta) | Rs 1,00,68,157 |
Om Parkash Soni Social Media
| Platform | Handle | Followers | Notes |
| Twitter/X | Not publicly confirmed | Not publicly confirmed | No verified account independently confirmed |
| Not publicly confirmed | Not publicly confirmed | No verified account identified | |
| Not publicly confirmed | Not publicly confirmed | No verified page independently confirmed | |
| YouTube | Not publicly confirmed | Not publicly confirmed | No verified account identified |
Detailed, verified social media presence for Om Parkash Soni is not publicly confirmed across major platforms in available records.
Om Parkash Soni Controversies
Om Parkash Soni Disproportionate Assets Case and Arrest (2023)
In July 2023, Om Parkash Soni was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau on allegations of amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income during his tenure as a minister between 2016 and 2022. The arrest of a former Deputy Chief Minister was a significant political development in Punjab. The case subsequently prompted a probe by the Enforcement Directorate under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. He was later granted bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in the disproportionate assets case. He has denied wrongdoing. No conviction has been recorded.
Om Parkash Soni Sanitiser Purchase Allegation
A separate Vigilance Bureau probe examined allegations relating to the purchase of sanitisers at allegedly inflated rates during the COVID-19 third wave, while Soni held the Health portfolio. Soni publicly denied any scam in the sanitiser purchase. No conviction has been recorded in this matter, and the allegations remain at the investigation stage in the records reviewed.
Om Parkash Soni Defamation Case Against Navjot Singh Sidhu (2009 to 2017)
Following his narrow 2009 Lok Sabha defeat to Navjot Singh Sidhu, Om Parkash Soni filed a defamation case against Sidhu in Amritsar after Sidhu accused him of involvement in a drug peddling racket. Soni withdrew the case in 2017 when Sidhu joined the Congress party, ending the long-running legal dispute between the two Amritsar politicians.
Lesser Known Facts About Om Parkash Soni
- He was the first Mayor of the Amritsar Municipal Corporation, elected on 25 June 1991 after the city was reorganised into 50 wards, making him a foundational figure in modern Amritsar civic governance.
- He won his first Assembly seat in 1997 as an Independent candidate before formally aligning his electoral career with the Congress in subsequent elections.
- He is one of the most prominent Hindu political leaders in the Sikh-majority Majha region, a demographic distinction that has been central to his political positioning within the Punjab Congress.
- He lost the 2009 Amritsar Lok Sabha election to Navjot Singh Sidhu by just 6,858 votes, one of the narrower parliamentary margins in Amritsar’s recent electoral history, and the two later became Congress party colleagues.
- He protested his 2019 portfolio change from School Education to Medical Education and Research by refusing to join his office for over two weeks, a rare public act of ministerial protest within the Amarinder Singh government.
- He reached the peak of his career as Deputy Chief Minister in September 2021 but lost his own Assembly seat just six months later in the 2022 election, an unusual electoral defeat for a sitting Deputy CM.
- In 2018, he and his son Vikas Soni publicly submitted urine samples for drug testing during the Punjab government’s mandatory dope test campaign for government employees, a symbolic gesture of support for the anti-drug initiative.
Om Parkash Soni FAQ
Who is Om Parkash Soni?
Om Parkash Soni, known as OP Soni, is an Indian politician and Congress leader from Amritsar who served as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab from September 2021 to March 2022. He is a five-time MLA, Amritsar’s first Mayor, and a former Punjab Cabinet Minister.
How old is Om Parkash Soni?
He was born on 3 July 1957, making him 68 years old as of 2026.
What is Om Parkash Soni’s net worth?
His declared total assets per the 2022 Election Commission filing are approximately Rs 18.28 crore, with declared liabilities of approximately Rs 1.01 crore, per the Our Neta summary.
Is Om Parkash Soni married?
Yes. His wife is Suman Soni, and they have a son named Vikas Soni.
Who are Om Parkash Soni’s parents?
His father is Jagat Mitter Soni and his mother is Prem Soni.
What is Om Parkash Soni known for?
He is known for serving as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab, for being Amritsar’s first Mayor, for his five terms as an MLA, and for holding the School Education, Health, and Medical Education portfolios as a Punjab Cabinet Minister.
When was Om Parkash Soni Deputy Chief Minister?
He served as Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab from 20 September 2021 to 16 March 2022, under Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi.
What is Om Parkash Soni’s constituency?
He represented Amritsar West (1997 to 2012) and Amritsar Central (2012 to 2022) in the Punjab Legislative Assembly.
What is the Vigilance Bureau case against Om Parkash Soni?
In July 2023, he was arrested by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau on allegations of disproportionate assets accumulated during his tenure as a minister between 2016 and 2022. The case led to an Enforcement Directorate probe under the PMLA. He was later granted bail and has denied wrongdoing. No conviction has been recorded.
What was the 2017 Amritsar Central election result?
Congress candidate Om Parkash Soni secured the seat by defeating BJP’s Tarun Chugh with a winning margin of 21,116 votes.
Source
PTC News, Om Parkash Soni, MLA Amritsar Central,
https://www.ptcnews.tv/om-parkash-soni-mla-amritsar-central
Our Neta, Om Parkash Soni, INC MLA from Amritsar Central,
https://ourneta.com/neta/om-parkash-soni/
Punjab Legislative Assembly, Om Parkash Soni, Know Your Minister,
http://www.punjabassembly.nic.in/index.php/ministers/knowyourminister/25/