Opinions
Contemporary commentary published on Indian Liberals: feature essays, reviews of historical episodes, and reflections on figures in the tradition.
-
16 January 2026
Palkhivala’s Lost Battle Shapes the Future of Indian Online Gaming
“The Supreme Court's verdict in R. M. D. Chamarbaugwalla vs. Union of India outlined core principles to determine if any economic activity constituted gambling.”
-
5 July 2024
N. Dandekar on the Role of the Indian Navy
“Dandekar asserted that an appropriate posture for the armed forces would involve defence from strength.”
-
19 June 2024
The Swatantra Way for Forging a Formidable Coalition
“In a democracy, parties and alliances must offer alternatives or choices to the voters through their programmes.”
-
15 November 2023 · Ch Prashanth
Acharya N G Ranga: The Farmer’s Friend and Swatantra Party Stalwart
“He was a champion of Peasant rights and is considered the father of the peasant movement in India.”
-
8 November 2023 · Ch Prashanth
Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu: A Visionary Leader and pioneer of Press Freedom
“He championed Press freedom as a reputed journalist and carried out crucial reforms for the development of Rural people.”
-
1 November 2023 · Ch Prashanth
Kandukuri Veeresalingam: Icon of Andhra’s Renaissance
“Veeresalingam used literature as a tool to banish the darkness of superstition and social vices, and spread awareness.”
-
25 October 2023 · Avanti Lele
Two Strands of Liberal Expression : Dr. Anandibai Joshi and Lakshmibai Tilak
“As liberal feminist ideas became more articulate and the suffrage movement became stronger in America, an intellectual churning shaped the Indian psyche in the latter half of the 19th century.”
-
18 October 2023 · Avanti Lele
Gopal Krishna Gokhale, a proponent of liberalism in India (भारतातील उदारमतवादाचे पुरस्कर्ते गोपाळ कृष्ण गोखले)
“राजकीय शिक्षणाशिवाय राजकीय बदल होऊ शकत नाही यावर त्यांचा ठाम विश्वास होता।”
-
11 October 2023 · Avanti Lele
Lokmanya Tilak : A Conservative Liberal?
“He has often been interpreted and largely misinterpreted as a revolutionary, an extremist, and a nationalist leader who supported the use of violence.”
-
4 October 2023 · Avanti Lele
Gopal Ganesh Agarkar and the Vindication of Women’s Education
“In the face of opposition from several sections of the society, Agarkar held on to the liberal ideas of equality of opportunity, individual choice, individual freedom, and education for women.”
-
27 September 2023 · Avanti Lele
The Forgotten Legacy of Yashodabai Agarkar
“Yashodabai Agarkar is a figure missed entirely by history.”
-
13 September 2023 · Ch Prashanth
Gurajada Apparao: Liberal and Feminist Insights in Kanyasulkam
“Through his works, Apparao challenged the authoritarian and orthodox beliefs deeply ingrained in Indian society and culture.”
-
6 September 2023 · Avanti Lele
Fighting for Freedom : The Tumultuous Legacy of Raghunath Karve
“Karve was a strong believer in individual autonomy especially of the corporeal kind and was a strong supporter of birth control.”
-
30 August 2023 · Ch Prashanth
Gurcharan Das: Champion of liberal ideals
“As a liberal figure, Das advocates for individual freedom, limited government intervention, and free-market economics.”
-
23 August 2023 · Ch Prashanth
Dr Muthulakshmi Reddi: Beacon of Women's Liberty
“By championing gender equality she left an indelible mark on South Indian social fabric.”
-
15 March 2023
Kanuparti Varalakshmamma: A Feminist Writer And Social Activist
“Through these letters, she promoted awareness, evoked debates about many social evils and problems faced by women, and tried to educate women about their rights.”
-
23 September 2022
Anandibai Joshee: First Indian Woman Doctor
“She was determined to go to America for a medical degree as she believed in the urgent need for an Indian female doctor.”
-
19 September 2022
Shareefa Hamid Ali: A Pioneer of Intersectional Feminism
“She firmly believed that to break the shackles of societal categories it was important for people to recognize their individual rights and value their personal liberty.”
-
13 September 2022
Rani Rashmoni Das: Reform in 19th Century Bengal
“She devoted her life to bringing social reform for women and lower-caste communities, fighting against elite Hindu orthodoxy and the oppressive colonisers.”
-
11 February 2022
Dr Janaki Ammal: India’s First Woman Botanist
“Janaki was among the few women who chose her career over marriage.”
-
19 December 2021
The Resolute Abala Bose: Educationist, Suffragist, Philanthropist
“There is a tendency of reducing women to their relationships with men who have achieved great feats.”
-
10 December 2021
Forgotten Feminist, Educator: Fatima Sheikh
“A rarely remembered social reformer, Fatima Sheikh was among the first Indian Muslim woman educator.”
-
30 November 2021
The Zealous Azizun Nisa
“Her selfless and brave attitude chose martyrdom for her country over confessions.”
-
30 October 2021
Iqbalunnisa Hussain: A Stalwart of Muslim Women’s Education
“Iqbalunnisa Hussain's immense contribution to feminist literature and her vision for women's education played a tremendous role in reforming the lives of Muslim women in the 20th century.”
-
18 October 2021
India's Nuclear Ambitions: Minoo Masani as a Liberal Peacenik
“From the time of Nehru laying the foundation of the atomic energy program, India as a nuclear power has come a long way now with its acceptance in the global nuclear regime.”
-
24 September 2021
Freedom First's Resistance to Indira Gandhi's Emergency
“Not only did the promulgation of the Emergency saw the suspension of electoral democracy but also the curtailment of press freedom.”
-
22 September 2021
V S Srinivasa Sastri: Diplomat, Politician, Liberal
“We want political power; let there be no mistake about it.”
-
14 September 2021
Babytai Kamble's Resolute Feminism
“As a Dalit woman, she understood the complexities of caste, class and gender-based oppressions and their overlapping nature.”
-
3 September 2021
Why Remember Sharad Joshi?
“Sharad Joshi was one of the first leaders to acknowledge the importance of freedom and dignity, and, that, there is no greater value than leading a free and dignified life.”
-
25 August 2021
M. G. Ranade on Wealth Creation
“Ranade identified two root causes of this phenomenon.”
-
12 August 2021
Mithan Tata Lam, The Unexplored Life of an Indian Suffragist
“Indian suffragists had an immense role to play both in the nationalist struggle and the subsequent universal adult franchise.”
-
4 August 2021
The Moderate Liberalism of “Ferocious Mehta”
“However, the shrinking of the liberal space and a clear absence of substantial liberal constituency have left the moderate nationalists heirless, so to speak.”
-
26 July 2021
The Liberalism of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
“Yet this Sanskrit scholar battled to end child marriage and high-caste polygamy, and to enable Hindu widows to re-marry.”
-
26 July 2021
C Y Chintamani: The Liberal Editor, Politician
“A prodigy, nationalist, journalist, politician, thinker - C.Y. Chintamani was a liberal in every sense of the word.”
-
23 July 2021
Karsandas Mulji, The Forgotten ‘Indian Luther’
“Karsandas Mulji's reformist legacy is rooted in his efforts to break through conformist tendencies and question even the most superior authority.”
-
12 July 2021
Rukhmabai - An Unrelenting Force Against Patriarchal Norms
“Apart from breaking the glass ceiling in the field of medicine, she became a major force against child marriage and other social evils in India.”
-
30 June 2021
Dadabhai Naoroji: Social Reforms, Transnational Connections and Statistical Liberalism
“Given the uncooperative attitudes of colonial bureaucracy at home, Naoroji figured that the best way to serve Indian interests would be to influence decision-making in the British parliament.”
-
24 June 2021
Hamid Dalwai and the Muslim Satyashodhak Mandal
“In Dalwai's words, 'India couldn't become Spain but she did not become Afghanistan either'.”
-
17 June 2021
GG Agarkar : Modern Indian Liberal and Reformer
“The great Indian classic liberal that he was, Agarkar championed the cause of rationality and women emancipation in colonial Maharashtra.”
-
4 June 2021
Swatantra Party : A Big Tent Challenge to Congress Hegemony
“What enabled this coalition of disparate groups was the Nehruvian Congress’ grip over political power which effectively turned India into one-party democracy and a radical left drift in economic policy”
-
3 June 2021
B.R. Shenoy : India's First Neoliberal?
-
27 May 2021
Minoo Masani : From Socialism to Liberal Swatantra Party
“Masani's transition from an admirer of the Bolshevik Russia to the propagator of market liberalism in India reflects his pragmatism and open-mindedness, traits rarely found in most intellectuals and politicians.”
-
26 May 2021
The Unwavering Feminism of Tarabai Shinde
“It is a scathing critique of gender inequality and questions the institutional gender inequality entrenched in the social institutions of that time.”
-
18 May 2021
Sharad Joshi and the Crisis of Trade Unions
“Sharad Joshi addressed his criticism against the government as well as the then labour movements in the country.”
-
27 April 2021
Indian Liberals, Quest Magazine and India's First Dictatorship
“India under the Emergency (1975-77) imposed by Indira Gandhi saw the suspension of fundamental rights, electoral democracy, and press freedom.”
-
19 April 2021
M.G. Ranade on Revival and Reform
“Ranade's ideas were so distinct because he managed to have a fine blend of Indian sensibility and Western Liberalism.”
-
13 April 2021
B.R. Ambedkar on Justice Ranade, Social Reform and Failure of Indian Liberalism
“Thus the collapse of the Liberal party was ‘really a disaster to the country’ because ‘the rule of a single party is fatal to Popular Government.’”
-
9 April 2021
The Radical Humanism of Jyotiba Phule
“His idea of patriotism wasn’t limited to mere territorial unity.”
-
7 April 2021
Rajaji's Views on Nuclear Bomb
“The nuclear threat to stability and global order apparently haunted the conservative imagination of Rajaji.”
-
24 March 2021
G.G. Agarkar : Revisiting a Misunderstood Legacy
“He opens his first essay with the analogy of an ongoing 'Tug of war' between what he called the extremely ignorant people of India on one hand and an extremely self-serving British government in India.”
-
11 March 2021
Women and Liberalism : The Life of Begum Rokeya
“Her life was itself her message and although she never focussed on defining herself within an ideological spectrum, most of her life struggles were indeed integral aspects of the liberal tradition.”
-
9 March 2021
Homi Mody’s Liberalism: From Pro-Business to Pro-Market
“For Homi Mody, excessive regulation and increased outlays on planning posed a threat to economic freedom inherent in a democracy.”
-
25 February 2021
Justice H.R. Khanna and the Art of Speaking Truth to Power
“Four of the judges of the Constitution Bench had agreed to this stance and Justice H. R. Khanna was the lone dissenting voice to this opinion.”
-
29 January 2021
C. Rajagopalachari's Thoughts on Culture
“Culture has more to do with behaviour and way of living than with character.”
-
19 January 2021
Piloo Mody: Swatantra’s Witty Parliamentarian
“Piloo Mody argued for a limited role of the state in the book to strengthen democracy.”
-
18 January 2021
Poona Sarvajanik Sabha and Its Liberal Affiliations
“The Sabha was meant to work as a mediating body between the state and people by airing the grievances of people and helping them make claims on the state.”
-
13 January 2021
Women and Liberalism : The Life of Ramabai Ranade
“A distinctively liberal feature of Ramabai's work is how all women, despite their social or economic background, were accepted in the Seva Sadan.”
-
15 December 2020
The Aborted Promise of Economic Liberalisation in Mid-1960s
“From 1991 onwards, two characteristic features of economic liberalisation in India have been reforms during crisis and reforms by stealth.”
-
24 October 2020
Hauling Down the Angels
“This has resulted in 40% reduction in angel investment and seed funding, much to the disappointment of young startups in the country.”
-
24 October 2020
Harish Chandra Mukherjee - A less known liberal
“Using principles of natural justice and fairness, Harishchandra sharply criticized the profligate use of Indian resources and indiscriminate practices employed by planters in Bengal.”
-
24 October 2020
The Imagined Democracy in India
“A society which ignores and discourages the right to dissent is doing an act of self-destruction or entering to the state of complete stagnation.”
-
24 October 2020
Diversity, Democracy, and Dissent
“Recently, the Supreme Court of India came up with, perhaps, the best definition of the term when it referred to dissent as “the safety valve of democracy”.”
-
24 October 2020
Encoding Privacy in a Digital World
“The cost that user’s pay for accessing online services is not cash but voluntarily giving up on our personal data.”
-
24 October 2020
Fourth Industrial Revolution - What it Means for India?
“The newspapers are flooded with lopsided headlines of the super-intelligent robots replacing humans and taking up their jobs and ultimately their dignity and political control which has created an environment of confusion and fear.”
-
24 October 2020
Hriday Nath Kunzru, The Liberal Institution Builder
“The roots of Indian democracy in the Nehru years were, in no small measure, strengthened by the labour of the likes of Kunzru.”
-
22 October 2020
Encoding Privacy in a Digital World
“Arguing that you don't care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide, is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say.”
No opinions match the current filter. Try removing some criteria.