Historian Sumit Sarkar Dies at 87

Key facts

• Sumit Sarkar, a prominent historian of modern India, died at the age of 87 at his Delhi residence on August 14, 2026, following age-related ailments.
• He was a founding member of the Subaltern Studies Collective, a group that sought to rewrite Indian history from the perspective of marginalised groups.
• His notable works include 'The Swadeshi Movement in Bengal', 'Modern India: 1885-1947', and 'Writing Social History'.
• Sarkar taught history at the University of Delhi for the longest period, and also taught at the University of Calcutta and the University of Burdwan.
• He received the Sarit Chatterjee Memorial Award in 2003 and the Rabindra Puraskar in 2004 for 'Writing Social History', which he returned in 2007 to protest the treatment of farmers by the West Bengal government.
• He was survived by his wife historian Tanika Sarkar and son Aditya Sarkar, an associate professor at the University of Warwick.