Arun Shourie (; born 2 November 1941) is an Indian

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social sciences, social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this ...

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

author In legal discourse, an author is the creator of an original work that has been published, whether that work exists in written, graphic, visual, or recorded form. The act of creating such a work is referred to as authorship. Therefore, a sculpt ...

and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. He has worked as an economist with the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...

, a consultant to the

Planning Commission of India The Planning Commission was an institution in the Government of India which formulated India's Five-Year Plans, among other functions. In his first Independence Day speech in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced his intention to diss ...

, editor of the ''

Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language India, Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932 by P. Varadarajulu Naidu. It is headquartered in Noida, owned by the Indian Express Limited, ''Indian Express Group''. It was later taken over by Ramnat ...

'' and ''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...

'' and a Minister of Communications and Information Technology in the Vajpayee Ministry (1998–2004). He was awarded the

Ramon Magsaysay Award The Ramon Magsaysay Award (Filipino language, Filipino: ''Gawad Ramon Magsaysay'') is an annual award established to perpetuate former Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay's example of integrity in governance, courageous service to the people, ...

in 1982 and the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

in 1990. He was awarded the prestigious

International Editor of the Year Award {{no footnotes, date=January 2019 ''International Editor of the Year Award'' is a prize awarded yearly to journalists and press editors outside the United States by World Press Review ( Worldpress.org) magazine. The award has been presented by ...

in 1982, given by ''

World Press Review ''World Press '' (Worldpress.org) is an independent, nonpartisan New York based magazine founded in 1974 and initially published by Stanley Foundation and Teri Schure, with an online edition which was launched in 1997. The headquarters of the ...

'', New York. Popularly perceived as one of the main

Hindu nationalist Hindu nationalism has been collectively referred to as the expression of political thought, based on the native social and cultural traditions of the Indian subcontinent. "Hindu nationalism" is a simplistic translation of . It is better descri ...

intellectuals during the 90s and early 2000s, for instance writing controversial works on

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

and

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

apart from attacks on left-wing ideologues, he considers himself skeptical of religions, especially the concept of the organised religion.

Early life and education

Arun Shourie was born in

Jalandhar Jalandhar () is a city in the state of Punjab, India, Punjab in India. With a considerable population, it ranks as the List of cities in Punjab and Chandigarh by population, third most-populous city in the state and is the largest city in the ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, on 2 November 1941. He is the son of Hari Dev Shourie (1911–2005), who was a well-known consumer activist in India. He was an IAS officer and served as an officer in many departments including Deputy Commissioner of Rohtak. The Government of India awarded Hari Dev Shourie the Padma Bhushan and the Padma Vibhushan, the third and the second highest civilian awards. Hari Dev Shourie was also named on People of the Year by the Limca Book of Records. Shourie did his schooling at Modern School, Barakhamba, and received a bachelor's in Economics(H) from St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He then obtained his doctorate in economics from

Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs The Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs (Maxwell School) is the professional public policy school of Syracuse University, a private research university in Syracuse, New York. The school is organized in 11 academic departments and 1 ...

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

in 1966.

Personal life

Shourie is married to Anita, and they have a son. His sister is the journalist

Nalini Singh Nalini Singh (born September 1, 1945) is an Indian journalist. She has been the anchor for several current affairs programs on Doordarshan, and is most known for her program, 'Aankhon Dekhi', on investigative journalism. She had made another ...

. Arun Shourie speaks about his personal life and reviews his life events as case diaries. "My writing is like the case diary of an advocate which is aimed at winning a case" and his opinions on journalism. He is skeptical of religions, especially the concept of organised religion. He shared his life experiences in the 2011-book ''Does He Know a Mother's Heart: How Suffering Refutes Religion''. In his 2020-book ''Preparing for Death'', he wrote about dealing with mortality, and added that others can approach this eventuality by looking at the examples of

Ramakrishna Paramahamsa Ramakrishna (18 February 1836 – 16 August 1886——— —), also called Ramakrishna Paramahansa (; ; ), born Ramakrishna Chattopadhay,M's original Bengali diary page 661, Saturday, 13 February 1886''More About Ramakrishna'' by Swami Prab ...

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist lege ...

Ramana Maharshi Ramana Maharshi (; ; 30 December 1879 – 14 April 1950) was an Indian Hindu Sage (philosophy), sage and ''jivanmukta'' (liberated being). He was born Venkataraman Iyer, but is mostly known by the name Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. He was b ...

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

and

Vinoba Bhave Vinayak Narahar Bhave, also known as Vinoba Bhave (; 11 September 1895 – 15 November 1982), was an Indian advocate of nonviolence and human rights. Often called ''Acharya'' (Teacher in Sanskrit), he is best known for the Bhoodan Movement. He ...

Career

Economist

Shortly after receiving PhD in economics from

Shourie joined the

as an economist in 1967 where he worked for more than 10 years. Simultaneously, between 1972 and 1974, he was a consultant to the Indian Planning Commission and it was around this time that he began writing articles as a journalist, criticising economic policy.

Journalism

In 1975, during The Emergency imposed by then prime minister,

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and stateswoman who served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India from 1966 to 1977 and again from 1980 un ...

, Shourie began writing for the ''

'' in opposition to what he saw as an attack on civil liberties. The newspaper, owned by

Ramnath Goenka Ramnath Goenka (22 April 1904 – 5 October 1991) was an Indian newspaper publisher. He bought the majority stake of ''The Indian Express'' in 1930s. He created the Indian Express Group with various English and regional language publications.'' ...

, was a focal point for the government's efforts at censorship. He became a fellow of the

Indian Council of Social Science Research The Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) is the national body overseeing research in the social sciences in India. It was established in New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delh ...

in 1976. In January 1979, Goenka appointed Shourie as executive editor of the newspaper, giving him a ''carte blanche'' to do with it as he saw fit. He developed a reputation as an intelligent, fearless writer and editor who campaigned for freedom of the press, exposed corruption and defended civil liberties. Influenced by

Gandhian The followers of Mahatma Gandhi,one of the prominent figure of the Indian independence movement, are called Gandhians. Gandhi's legacy includes a wide range of ideas ranging from his dream of ideal India (or ''Rama Rajya)'', economics, environ ...

ideals, Shourie has been called a "veteran journalist". Shourie was a winner of the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 1982, in the Journalism, Literature and Creative Communication Arts category as "a concerned citizen employing his pen as an effective adversary of corruption, inequality and injustice." In 2000, he was named as one of the

International Press Institute International Press Institute (IPI) is a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of journalism practices. The institution was founded by 34 editors from 15 countries at Columbia Universit ...

's ''

World Press Freedom Heroes International Press Institute World Press Freedom Heroes are individuals who have been recognized by the Vienna-based International Press Institute for "significant contributions to the maintenance of press freedom and freedom of expression" and " ...

''. He has also been named

and was awarded The Freedom to Publish Award.

Politics

Arun Shourie was nominated from the state of

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

as a BJP representative for two successive tenures in the

Rajya Sabha Rajya Sabha (Council of States) is the upper house of the Parliament of India and functions as the institutional representation of India’s federal units — the states and union territories.https://rajyasabha.nic.in/ It is a key component o ...

, thus being a Member of Parliament for 1998–2004 and 2004–2010. He held the office of Minister of Disinvestment, Communication and Information Technology in the government of India under Vajpayee's prime ministership. As Disinvestment Minister, he led the sale of Maruti,

VSNL Tata Communications Limited (previously known as Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited) is an Indian telecommunications company. It was a government-owned telecommunications service provider before being sold to the Tata Group in 2002 under the Third ...

Hindustan Zinc Hindustan Zinc Limited (HZL) is an Indian integrated mining and resources producer of zinc, lead, silver and cadmium. It is a subsidiary of Vedanta Limited. Earlier it was a Central Public Sector Undertaking, sold by Government of India to Ved ...

among others. Shourie was among many who objected to

The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act 1986 The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act, passed by the Parliament of India in 1986, was enacted to protect the rights of Muslim women who have been divorced from their husband and to address related matters. The Act was passed by ...

, which the government headed by Rajiv Gandhi proposed to alleviate communal violence and retain

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

votes. Claimed by the government to be a reinforcement of India's constitutional secularism, it was widely criticised by both Muslims and Hindus. The liberals among them, says

Ainslie Embree Ainslie Thomas Embree (; January 1, 1921 – June 6, 2017) was a Canadian Indologist and historian. He was considered a leading scholar of modern Indian history and played a seminal role in the introduction of South Asian studies into US college ...

, saw it as "a capitulation to the forces of Islamic obscurantism, a return ... to the thirteenth century"; the Hindu revivalist critics thought it was "weakening Indian unity". Shourie wrote articles that tried to show that the treatment of women as required by the Quran would in fact offer them protection, although the application of Islamic law in practice was oppressing them. He was in turn criticised for what was perceived as a thinly-veiled attack on Islam itself, with

Rafiq Zakaria Rafiq Zakaria (5 April 1920 – 9 July 2005) was an Indian politician and Islamic religious cleric. Zakaria represented India abroad at the United Nations thrice. He was the first Muslim urban and development minister of the newly created Mah ...

, the Muslim scholar, saying that Shourie's concern for reform of Islam was in fact demonstrative of Hindu contempt that used the plight of Muslim women as an example of the backwardness of the community.

Vir Sanghvi Vir Sanghvi (born 5 July 1956) is an Indian print and television journalist, author, columnist and talk show host. He has been a member of many professional, academic and government bodies including the National Integration Council. Currently, h ...

termed it "Hindu chauvinism with a liberal face". After the defeat of the BJP in 2009 general elections, Shourie asked for introspection and accountability within the party. He deplored factionalism within the party and those who brief journalists to aid their own agenda. Shourie has been described by

Christophe Jaffrelot Christophe Jaffrelot (born 12 February 1964) is a French political scientist and Indologist specialising in South Asia, particularly India and Pakistan. He is a professor of South Asian politics and history the ''Centre d'études et de recherches ...

, a political scientist, as "a writer sympathetic to militant Hindu themes" and has publicly voiced support for the aims of the

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS,, ) is an Indian right-wing politics, right-wing, Hindutva, Hindu nationalist volunteer paramilitary organisation. It is the progenitor and leader of a large body of organisations called the Sangh Parivar ( ...

(RSS), a nationalist

Hindutva Hindutva (; ) is a Far-right politics, far-right political ideology encompassing the cultural justification of Hindu nationalism and the belief in establishing Hindu hegemony within India. The political ideology was formulated by Vinayak Da ...

organisation. This has caused unease among some of those who admire his journalism. He has said that, although he sees danger from perceived Muslim violence such as the

Godhra train burning The Godhra train burning occurred on the morning of 27 February 2002, when 59 Hindu pilgrims and '' karsevaks'' returning from Ayodhya were killed in a fire inside the Sabarmati Express near the Godhra railway station in Gujarat, India. The c ...

incident of 2002, people have tended to redefine the "Hindutva" term. He says that prominent members of the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...

(BJP), of which he is a member and which has ties to the RSS — specifically,

L. K. Advani Lal Krishna Advani (born 8 November 1927) is an Indian politician who served as the Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004. He is one of the co-founders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sa ...

and

Atal Bihari Vajpayee Atal Bihari Vajpayee (25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018) was an Indian poet, writer and statesman who served as the prime minister of India, first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months from 1998 ...

— have shown their opposition to sectarian hatred and in their attempts to make the BJP inclusive have tried to marginalise those on both the Muslim and Hindu extremes who promote such hatred. As a political scientist, he views that present electoral system does not concern competency and integrity. He emphasised his views in a cultural conference called Tomorrow's India Global Summit and added that the pressure to bring about change in the present electoral system should come from the society. Shourie has opposed

reservation __NOTOC__ Reservation may refer to: Places Types of places: * Indian reservation, in the United States * Military base, often called reservations * Nature reserve Government and law * Reservation (law), a caveat to a treaty * Reservation in India, ...

, a system of official legal discrimination in India similar to "affirmative action" in the United States. In 2017, he said "Panditji (

Jawaharlal Nehru Jawaharlal Nehru (14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat, and statesman who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20th century. Nehru was a pr ...

) had rightly said that in that way (reservation) lies not only folly but disaster."

Writer

Arun Shourie has written numerous books. According to one review, the traits of his writings are:

Criticism

With the exception of

, he has little time for any religious thinker and, says Nussbaum, his books "nowhere ... seek to provide balance; nowhere is there a sense of complexity. All have the same mocking, superior tone." Historian D.N. Jha criticized Shourie's book '' Eminent Historians'', which concerned the

NCERT textbook controversies The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is an apex resource organisation set up by the Government of India to assist and advise the central and state governments on academic matters related to school education. The mod ...

, on the grounds that it contains "slander" and "has nothing to do with history."

IIT Kanpur

In 2000, Shourie pledged the entire amount (Rs. 12 crore) of discretionary spending available to him under

Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme Member may refer to: * Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon * Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set * In object-oriented programming, a member of a class ** Field (computer science), entries in ...

(MPLADS) to setting up of Bio-Sciences & Bio-engineering Department at the

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT- Kanpur or IIT-K) is a public institute of technology located in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. As an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), it was declared an Institute of National Importance by ...

. In 2005, he again pledged Rs. 11 crore for developing a separate building for Environmental Sciences and

Environmental Engineering Environmental engineering is a professional engineering Academic discipline, discipline related to environmental science. It encompasses broad Science, scientific topics like chemistry, biology, ecology, geology, hydraulics, hydrology, microbiolo ...

at the institute.Grape Vine Newsletter
/ref>

Books

Author *''Symptoms of fascism'', New Delhi : Vikas, 1978, 322 p. *''Hinduism : essence and consequence : a study of the Upanishads, the Gita and the Brahma-Sutras'', Sahibabad : Vikas House, 1979, 414 p. *''Institutions in the Janata phase'', Bombay : Popular Prakashan, 1980, 300 p. *''Mrs Gandhi's second reign'', New Delhi : Vikas; New York : Distributed by Advent Books, 1983, 532 p. *''The Assassination & after'', New Delhi : Roli Books Internat., 1985, 160 p. *''On the current situation : new opportunities, new challenges'', Pune : New Quest, 1985, 57 p. *''Religion in Politics'', New Delhi : Roli Books, 1987, 334 p. *''Individuals, institutions, processes : how one may strengthen the other in India today'', New Delhi, India; New York, N.Y., U.S.A. : Viking, 1990, 239 p. *''The State as charade:

V.P. Singh Vishwanath Pratap Singh (25 June 1931 – 27 November 2008) was an Indian politician who served as the prime minister of India from 1989 to 1990 and the Raja Bahadur of Manda. He was educated at Allahabad University and Fergusson College in ...

Chandra Shekhar Chandra Shekhar (17 April 1927 – 8 July 2007), also known as Jananayak, was an Indian politician and the prime minister of India, between 10 November 1990 and 21 June 1991. He headed a minority government of a breakaway faction of the Janata ...

& the rest'', New Delhi : Roli Books, 1991, 425 p. *''"The Only fatherland" : communists, "Quit India", and the Soviet Union'', New Delhi : ASA Publications, 1991, 204 p. *''These lethal, inexorable laws: Rajiv, his men, and his regime'', New Delhi : Roli Books, 1991, 433 p. *''A Secular Agenda: For Saving Our Country, for Welding It'', New Delhi : ASA Publications, 1993, 376 p. *''Indian Controversies: Essays on Religion in Politics'', New Delhi : Rupa & Co., 1993, 522 p. *''Missionaries in India : continuities, changes, dilemmas'', New Delhi : ASA Publications, 1994, 305 p. *''World of Fatwas: Shariah in Action'', New Delhi : ASA Publications, 1995, 685 p. *''Worshipping False Gods:

Ambedkar Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar (Bhīmrāo Rāmjī Āmbēḍkar; 14 April 1891 – 6 December 1956) was an Indian jurist, economist, social reformer and political leader who chaired the committee that drafted the Constitution of India based on t ...

, and the facts which have been erased'', New Delhi : ASA Publ., 1997, 663 p. *
Eminent Historians: Their Technology, Their Life, Their Fraud
', New Delhi : ASA Publ., 1998, 271 p. *''Harvesting Our Souls: Missionaries, Their Design, Their Claims'', New Delhi : ASA Publ., 2000, 432 p. *''Courts and Their Judgments: Premises, Prerequisites, Consequences'', New Delhi : Rupa & Co., 2001, 454 p. *''Governance And The Sclerosis That Has Set In'', New Delhi : ASA Publ., 2005, 262 p. *''Will the Iron Fence Save a Tree Hollowed by Termites?: Defence Imperatives Beyond the Military'', New Delhi : ASA Publications, 2005, 485 p. *''Falling Over Backwards: An Essay on Reservations, and on Judicial Populism'', New Delhi : ASA : Rupa & Co., 2006, 378 p. *''The Parliamentary System: What We Have Made Of It, What We Can Make Of It'', New Delhi : Rupa & Co., 2006, 264 p. *''Where Will All this Take Us?: Denial, Disunity, Disarray'', New Delhi : Rupa & Co., 2006, 604 p. *''Are We Deceiving Ourselves Again?: Lessons the Chinese Taught Pandit Nehru But which We Still Refuse to Learn'', New Delhi : ASA Publ., 2008, 204 p. *''We Must Have No Price: National Security, Reforms, Political Reconstruction'', New Delhi : Express Group : Rupa & Co., 2010, 343 p. *''Does He Know A Mothers Heart : How Suffering Refutes Religion'', Noida : HarperCollins, 2011, 444 p. *''Two Saints: Speculations Around and About

and Ramana Maharishi'', Noida : HarperCollins, 2017, 496 p. *''Anita Gets Bail: What Are Our Courts Doing? What Should We Do About Them?'', Noida : HarperCollins, 2018, 288 p. *''Preparing For Death'', India Viking, 2020, 528 p. *''The Commissioner Of Lost Causes'', Penguin Viking, 2022, 616 p. Co-author *with Amarjit Kaurn, Raghu Rai et al., ''The Punjab story'', New Delhi : Roli books international, 1984, 199 p. *with

Sita Ram Goel Sita Ram Goel (16 October 1921 – 3 December 2003) was an Indian Hindu nationalist writer, and publisher known for his literature pertaining to Hinduism and Hindu nationalism in the late twentieth century. His work has been both celebrated an ...

, Harsh Narain, Jay Dubashi and

Ram Swarup Ram Swarup (Hindi: राम स्वरूप; – ), born Ram Swarup Agarwal, was an Indian author and one of the most important thought leaders of the Hindu revivalist movement.Adelheid Herrmann-Pfandt: Hindutva zwischen „Dekolonisierung� ...

, ''

Hindu Temples - What Happened to Them Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also been u ...

Vol. I : A Preliminary Survey'', New Delhi : Voice of India, 1990, 191 p. *with

Koenraad Elst Koenraad Elst (; born 7 August 1959) is a Belgian author, known primarily for his adherence to the Hindutva ideology and support of the Out of India theory, which is rega ...

, ''Freedom of expression — Secular Theocracy Versus Liberal Democracy'',

Voice of India Voice of India (VOI) is a publishing house based in New Delhi, India, that specialises in Hindu nationalist books and serves as one of the most important tools in the development of Hindutva ideologies. History Ram Swarup and Sita Ram Goel trav ...

(1998). *with

Arun Jaitley Arun Jaitley (28 December 1952 – 24 August 2019) was an Indian politician and attorney. A member of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Jaitley served as the Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of the Government of India from 2014 to 2019. Jait ...

Swapan Dasgupta Swapan Dasgupta (born 3 October 1955) is an Indian journalist and politician. He is influential within the Indian right wing, writing columns for leading English dailies espousing Hindu nationalism. He was a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha. ...

, Rama J Jois, Harsh Narain''- The Ayodhya Reference:Suprema Court judgment and commentaries'',

(1994)

References

Citations Bibliography * * * * * *

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shourie, Arun 1941 births Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Delhi Indian anti-communists Indian investigative journalists Living people Rajya Sabha members from Uttar Pradesh People from Jalandhar Punjab, India politicians Ramon Magsaysay Award winners Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in literature & education St. Stephen's College, Delhi alumni World Bank people Gandhians 20th-century Indian journalists Indian male journalists Journalists from Punjab, India Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs alumni Commerce and industry ministers of India Modern School (New Delhi) alumni People from Punjab Province (British India) Indian agnostics Indian former Hindus