Eminent Economist Meghnad Desai Passes Away at 85

Swift Summary

• Lord Meghnad Desai, an eminent economist and member of the UK’s House of Lords, passed away on July 29, 2025, at age 85.
• Born in Vadodara in 1940, he pursued economics studies from the university of Mumbai and earned his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1963.
• He was known for his diverse roles as a Marxist economist, labor Party activist, professor at LSE, columnist on Indian politics, biographer and novelist.
• He authored over 20 books and more than 200 journal articles. Key works include Marxian Economics (1979), Marx’s Revenge (2002), and Who Wrote The Bhagavadgita? (2014).
• In his book on the Gita, he argued that themes within it reinforce social inequality.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi mourned Desai’s death as a loss to India’s intellectual community; noted his contributions to strengthening India-U.K. ties.
• Padma Bhushan awardee in 2008 for outstanding service in economics.

Indian Opinion Analysis

Lord Meghnad Desai’s passing marks the end of an era characterized by intellectual versatility and sharp observation across fields such as economics, politics and culture. As someone who remained deeply connected with India despite rising to prominence abroad – including serving in academia at LSE – Desai exemplified global scholarly achievement while contributing considerably to Indian discussions on public policy through columns and books.The critique offered by Desai around prominent texts like the Bhagavad Gita or capitalism remains thought-provoking for both readers seeking progressive interpretation or revisiting traditional viewpoints critically-an approach emblematic not only academically but socially evolving discourse relevant evolving globally sensitive narratives balancing welfare doles drawn parallel!.

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