Meghnad Desai (1940–2025) was a renowned Indian-born British economist, author, and public intellectual who passed away on July 29, 2025, at the age of 85 , Born on July 10, 1940, in Vadodara, Gujarat, India.
Economist/Academic of Mehgnad Desai :
- Emeritus Professor of Economics at the London School of Economics, where he taught from 1965 to 2003.
- Specialized in Marxian economics, macroeconomics, and development economics, and published extensively on these subjects.
- Authored several books, including Marxian Economic Theory and Marx’s Revenge: The Resurgence of Capitalism and the Death of Statist Socialism.
- Founder of the Meghnad Desai Academy of Economics in Mumbai.
Achievements and Awards:
- Created a Life Peer as Baron Desai of St Clement Danes in 1991, making him a member of the UK’s House of Lords, the first Indian-origin Labour peer.
- Awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2008—the third-highest civilian honor in India—for his contributions to public affairs and economics.
- Received honorary doctorates and held advisory positions in global institutions, including the United Nations and the World Bank.
Books written By Him :
- Marxian Economic Theory (1973; revised 1979).
- Marx’s Revenge: The Resurgence of Capitalism and the Death of Statist Socialism (2002).
- Nehru’s Hero: Dilip Kumar in the Life of India (biography, 2004)—Desai humorously cited this as his “greatest achievement”.
- Published over 25 books and 200 academic papers across economics, politics, history, and culture.
- House of Lords: Though he was a member of the Labour Party for decades, Desai resigned in 2020 over concerns about handling of antisemitism in the party and subsequently served as a crossbench peer.
Other Distinctions of Meghnad Desai :
1) Recognized for his fearless commentary, intellectual independence, and ability to bridge India-UK relations , Known as a champion for truth, reason, and intellectual freedom, and an award-winning thinker.
Lived to age 85, passing away peacefully in hospital with family present.
2) “Third Highest Citizen” : The Padma Bhushan is India’s third-highest civilian award.
” Meghnad Desai’s legacy includes his pioneering work on Marxian economics, his role in public policy debates in both the UK and India, and his intellectual contributions to issues of development, globalization, and social justice. His passing marks the loss of a globally respected scholar and reformer who was recognized and honored by both his native and adopted countries” To Read about More Eminent Personality please visit www.emnentnews.com
