Rediscovering Lal Bahadur Shastri's Enduring Legacy: A Panel Discussion
Schedule
Tue Apr 14 2026 at 06:30 pm to 08:00 pm
UTC+05:30Location
Indian Heritage Academy | Bangalore, KA
About the event
Indian Heritage Academy in collaboration with Azim Premji University presents 'Rediscovering Lal Bahadur Shastri's Enduring Legacy: A Panel Discussion.' This panel discussion centres on The Great Conciliator: Lal Bahadur Shastri and the Transformation of India (Bloomsbury India, 2025), a biography by Dr Sanjeev Chopra, retired IAS officer, former Director of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, and Fellow of institutions, including Harvard and Cornell. The volume offers a definitive reassessment of India's second Prime Minister, tracing his journey from Mughalsarai to the highest office, and examining his political acumen, institution-building legacy, and the enduring resonance of Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan. Dr Chopra will be joined by Prof M V Rajeev Gowda, economist, former Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament, and Professor at IIM Bangalore and Ramakrishna Upadhya, veteran journalist and senior editor with the Deccan Herald. Audiences can expect a rigorous yet accessible conversation that interrogates why Shastri remains one of independent India's most consequential yet understudied leaders and what his leadership philosophy holds for contemporary governance.
About the speakers
Dr. Sanjeev Chopra
Dr. Sanjeev Chopra is a historian, columnist, and former Indian Administrative Service officer whose work sits at the intersection of Indian history, political economy, and governance. Over a 36-year career in public service, he held senior positions in agriculture, rural development, and administrative reform at state and central levels, culminating in his role as Director of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration.
He is the author of The Great Conciliator: Lal Bahadur Shastri and The Transformation of India (Bloomsbury India, 2025) and We the People of the States of Bharat: The Making and Remaking of India’s Internal Boundaries (HarperCollins India, 2022)—works that bring rigorous historical inquiry to questions of nationhood, federalism, and democratic governance.
Dr Chopra is currently Festival Director of Valley of Words, Dehradun, and is Distinguished Visiting Professor of Public Policy at UPES University and Swami Ram Himalayan University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland and a World Bank Robert S McNamara Fellow.
Prof. Rajeev Gowda
Mothakapalli Venkatappa Rajeev Gowda is an Indian politician and academician. He is a former member of parliament in the Rajya Sabha and a national spokesperson for the Indian National Congress.
He also currently serves as chairman of the Congress Research Department. He was a professor of Economics and Social Sciences and the chairperson of the Centre for Public Policy at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore and taught a range of courses. Prof. Gowda served as the director of the Central Board, Reserve Bank of India. He is currently the advisor for Bridge India, a progressive non-profit think tank set up in London in 2018.
Mr. P Ramakrishna Upadhya
P Ramakrishna Upadhya is a veteran journalist with over four decades of experience across print and electronic media, including The Indian Express, Doordarshan Kannada, and ETV Kannada. A Karnataka Rajyothsava Award winner, he has covered 20 elections, authored multiple books, and currently commentates on NDTV, India Today, and CNN-News18.
Where is it happening?
Indian Heritage Academy, 20th Main Rd, 6th Block, Koramangala, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560095, India, BangaloreEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
