Parakala Prabhakar (born 2 January 1959) is an Indian political economist and social commentator. He served as Communications Advisor in cabinet rank in the Government of Andhra Pradesh from July 2014 to June 2018. For several years, he presented current affairs discussion programme on Telugu television channels, such as Pratidhwani on ETV2 and Namaste Andhra Pradesh on NTV.[1]

Parakala Prabhakar
Parakala in 2015
Born (1959-01-02) 2 January 1959 (age 65)
Alma mater
Occupations
  • Political commentator
  • political economist
Known forCommunications advisor in the Andhra Pradesh Government
SpouseNirmala Sitharaman (m. 1986)
Children1
Websitewww.parakala.org

He was formerly a spokesman of Praja Rajyam Party.[2] His spouse is Nirmala Sitharaman, the incumbent union Minister of Finance and Minister of Corporate Affairs.

His also the author of the book The Crooked Timber of New India - Essays on a Republic in Crisis.[3]

Personal life edit

Parakala was born in a prominent Telugu speaking family[4] in Narsapuram, Andhra Pradesh. He belongs to Congress members' family. His mother, Parakala Kalikamba was a Member of Legislative Assembly in Andhra Pradesh, while his father, Parakala Seshavatharam, was a long time Legislator from Narasapuram and served in three successive Cabinets in the state of Andhra Pradesh in the 1970s and early 1980s. Parakala completed his doctorate from the London School of Economics. He did his Master of Arts (M.A.) and Master of Philosophy (M.Phil.) from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi.

Prabhakar married Nirmala Sitharaman in 1986, who became the Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs of the Government of India in Narendra Modi's cabinet. They have a daughter.

Political career edit

He was one of the founding members of the Praja Rajyam Party and was appointed as a spokesperson of the party.[5] However, in April 2009, he quit the party, a few months before the state election, citing disagreements with the party's functioning.[6]

References edit

  1. ^ "Parakala punctures Praja Rajyam". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  2. ^ TNM Staff (19 June 2018). "AP govt advisor and Nirmala Sitharaman's husband Parakala Prabhakar quits, blames Jagan". www.thenewsminute.com. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  3. ^ Prabhakar, Parakala (20 April 2023). "The Crooked Timber of New India - Essays on a Republic in Crisis - by Parakala Prabhakar [Paperback and Kindle ]". amazon.in.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ "A power couple whom AP looks up to". Times of India. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  5. ^ Arikatla, Venkat (5 September 2008). "Interview: 'We'll sweep next polls'". greatandhra.com. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
  6. ^ "Praja Rajyam spokesman spits venom, quits". Hindustan Times. 9 April 2009. Retrieved 6 October 2023.

4. Review of The Crooked Timber of New India — Essays on a Republic in Crisis: India after 2014 The Hindu June 08, 2023 | Updated June 09, 2023

External links edit