Rajni Kothari

Rajni Kothari (16 August 1928 – 19 January 2015) was an Indian political scientist, political theorist, academic and writer. He was the founder of Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) in 1963, a social sciences and humanities research institute, based in Delhi and Lokayan (Dialogue of the People), started in 1980 as a forum for interaction between activists and intellectuals.

One of the great political thinkers of the 20th-century, amongst his noted works include Politics in India (1970), Caste in Indian Politics (1973), and Rethinking Democracy (2005). In 1985, Lokayan was awarded the Right Livelihood Award for "linking and strengthening local groups working to protect civil liberties, women's rights and the environment."

Early life and background Kothari was the only son of his father, a Jain trader. His mother died early in life. He served as the chairman of Indian Council of Social Science Research and remained a member of the Planning Commission.

CSDS where he was an honorary fellow, On 27 November 2012, CSDS celebrated its 50th anniversary, presided over by Kothari.

Personal life He married in 1947, and his wife Hansa died in 1999. In his final years, his eldest son Smitu died in 2009. Smitu, trained in physics, communications and sociology, was involved in ecological, cultural and human rights issues. He had been a visiting professor at Cornell and Princeton Universities. Rajni Kothari had two other sons, Miloon and Ashish,

Works