M. J. Akbar

M.J. Akbar
Born Mobashar Jawad Akbar
(1951-01-11) 11 January 1951
Calcutta, India (Now Kolkata)
Nationality Indian
Ethnicity Bihari
Occupation Journalist, writer , National Spokesperson for Bharatiya Janata Party & Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand
Political party Bharatiya Janata Party (since 2014)
Indian National Congress (1989-1991)
Spouse(s) Mallika Joseph
Children Prayaag Jawad Akbar
Mukulika Akbar
Website M. J. Akbar's Blog

Mobashar Jawad "M.J." Akbar (Bengali: মবাসের জাবেদ একবার) is a leading Indian journalist and author besides being the national spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand.[1] He was the Editor-in-Chief and then Editorial Director of The Sunday Guardian, a weekly newspaper that he founded, until he left to join politics full-time. He has remained associated with the leading media houses and periodicals in India including India Today, Headlines Today, The Telegraph. The Asian Age and Deccan Chronicle among others.

He has written several non-fiction books, including Byline (New Delhi: Chronicle Books, 2003), a biography of Jawaharlal Nehru titled Nehru: The Making of India, a book on Kashmir titled Kashmir: Behind the Vale, Riot After Riot and India: The Siege Within. He also authored The Shade of Swords, a history of jihad. Akbar has also authored fiction, such as the family saga Blood Brothers. His latest book is Tinderbox: The past and future of Pakistan, in January 2012 which discusses the themes of identity crisis and class struggles in Pakistan.

Early life

He was born on 11 January 1951. As per semi-fictional book written by Akbar, Blood Brothers – A Family Saga, he suggested that his grandfather was a Hindu named Prayag, who converted into Islam in the small jute-mill town of Telinipara, north of Calcutta and situated in the Hooghly District of West Bengal- he would acquire the name Rehmatullah and marry a girl there.[2] Akbar attended Calcutta Boys' School and later Presidency College, Calcutta, where he attained a BA (Hons) in English between 1967 – 1970.[3]

Career

Akbar joined The Times of India in 1971 as a trainee. Within a few months, he moved to the The Illustrated Weekly of India, then India's largest selling magazine, working as a sub-editor as well as distinguishing himself as a feature writer capable of contributing a prolific number of stories. He would remain with the weekly until 1973 when he was named editor of the news fortnightly, Onlooker, owned by The Free Press Journal Group in Mumbai. In 1976, he moved to Calcutta to join the Ananda Bazar Patrika (ABP) Group as editor of The Sunday, a political weekly.[4] Within just three years of its launch, the investigative reporting pioneered by the magazine established its national circulation and number one position. The magazine took an uncompromising stand against the Emergency and fought press censorship and dictatorship. The Sunday not only established major trends in journalism but also spawned a new generation of journalists in the country.

In 1982, after the success of The Sunday, Akbar launched what is considered by some to be India's first modern newspaper. He conceived, designed and edited the daily newspaper, The Telegraph, which had a major impact on newspaper journalism in India.

Akbar was also the editor-in-chief of The Deccan Chronicle, a Hyderabad-based news daily.

In 1989, he took a brief detour into politics with his election to the Indian Parliament in November 1989 from Kishanganj in Bihar on a Congress(I) ticket. He lost the seat in the 1991 Lok Sabha elections.[5][6] He served as late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi's official spokesman.[7]

In 1991, Akbar joined the Government as an advisor in the Ministry of Human Resources, and helped policy planning in key areas of education, the National Literacy Mission and in the protection of heritage. He resigning from the post and quit politics in December 1992, returning to journalism and full-time writing. In 1993, Akbar started a new media company with the aim of creating India's first newspaper that would not only include an international focus within its editorial range, but also be the first Indian daily with an international edition. This newspaper appeared in February 1994. The Asian Age was launched with initial editions in Delhi, Bombay, and London, and by 2008 had grown, in collaboration with the Deccan Chronicle, to eight editions, into a major media presence nationally and internationally. In 2004, the group began publishing The International Herald Tribune in India, and became a publishing partner of The New York Times.[3]

M. J. Akbar speaking at the Halifax International Security Forum 2014

In 2005, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia appointed him as a member of the committee to draft a ten-year charter for Muslim nations on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.[8]

In March 2006, Akbar joined the Brookings Institution, Washington, as a Visiting Fellow in the Brookings Project on U.S. Policy Towards the Islamic World. During the late 90s, he diluted his stake in the Asian Age, eventually selling of a major part of it to the Reddys, the owners of the Deccan Chronicle Group.

In March 2008, Akbar was removed from The Asian Age and Deccan Chronicle due to differences with the owners over editorial policy, as some newspapers have reported it.

Akbar launched the fortnightly political magazine Covert on 13 May 2008 in Delhi with the first issue on stands on 14 May. Simultaneously, the Covert website[9] was launched two days later though it was ultimately discontinued.

Akbar launched a new Sunday newspaper from 31 January 2010, The Sunday Guardian, published from New Delhi and Chandigarh besides an edition called India on Sunday from London.[10] He remained the Editor-in-Chief and then Editorial Director there until May 2014, when he resigned to join politics full-time.

In the meanwhile, in September 2010, he joined the Living Media as Editorial Director of the leading weekly English news magazine India Today and the English news channel Headlines Today. He left in October 2012.

Politics

Akbar was a Congress MP from Kishanganj in Bihar between 1989 and 1991, he was also a Congress party spokesperson in 1989. M J Akbar joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in March 2014. He was appointed as national spokesperson of the party[11][12] and elected to Rajya Shabha from Jharkhand in June 2015.[1]

Personal life

Akbar is married to Mallika Joseph, his contemporary at The Times of India. They have two children, Prayaag and Mukulika.[13]

Books

References

  1. 1 2 "MJ Akbar Wins Rajya Sabha By-Poll from Jharkhand". NDTV.com. 2 July 2015.
  2. ↑ M. J. Akbar. "BLOOD BROTHERS BY M J AKBAR (Last Published 2006) | M J AKBAR". mjakbar.org. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  3. 1 2 "Biography". M J Akbar. 2015-12-18. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  4. ↑ Bhandare, Namita (21 May 2011). "70's: The decade of innocence". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 2 June 2011.
  5. ↑ "KEY HIGHLIGHTS OF GENERAL ELECTIONS, 1989 TO THE NINETH LOK SABHA - Vol I LS 89" (PDF). ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA, NEW DELHI. 1989. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  6. ↑ "Election 1991 results for Kishanganj". ELECTION COMMISSION OF INDIA, NEW DELHI. 1991. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  7. ↑ "Another shade of Akbar". The Times of India.
  8. ↑ "Profile of M J AKbar". Storylogy. Retrieved 25 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "[COVERT] Fortnightly Magazine". M. J. Akbar. 2009-05-17. Archived from the original on 2009-05-17. Retrieved 2016-01-12.
  10. ↑ "Latest News and In-depth Analysis, Opinion from India & world - SundayGuardianLive". Sunday Guardian.
  11. ↑ "Journalist MJ Akbar joins BJP and praises Modi". Hindustan Times. 2014-03-22. Retrieved 2014-06-05.
  12. ↑ "BJP appoints MJ Akbar as national spokesperson - The Economic Times on Mobile". M.economictimes.com. 2014-03-25. Retrieved 2014-06-05.
  13. ↑ Archived 6 December 2013 at the Wayback Machine

External links

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