This is a list of people associated with the Jawaharlal Nehru University. Excluded are those people whose only connection with JNU is that they were awarded an honorary degree.
Alumni
Arts NameClass YearDegreeNotabilityReferencesSanjay Chauhan (screenwriter) MA, MPhil (Centre for Indian Languages, School of Languages)Film story, Screenplay, Dialogue writer, Author [I am Kalam; Sahib Biwi aur Gangster; Paan Singh Tomar; Urmi, Main Aur Pradhan Mantri]P. Jaya KumarMA (Arts and Aesthetics)Filmmaker, Screenwriter, AuthorSrijit MukherjiBengali film directorSwara BhaskerMA (Sociology)Bollywood actressArchishman SarkerMA (Arts and Aesthetics), MPhil & PhD (Visual Arts)Indian art historianShaunak SenPhD (Arts and Aesthetics)Indian filmmaker, winner of Golden Eye awardB. V. Nandini Reddy1994International PoliticsTelugu Film Director
Politics and Law
Heads of State and Government NameClass YearDegreeNotabilityReferencesBaburam Bhattarai1986PhD in Urban Planning36th Prime Minister of NepalAli Zeidan24th Prime Minister of Libya
Others NameClass YearDegreeNotabilityReferencesMukul AryaAmbassador of India to Palestinehttps://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/mukul-arya-india-representative-at-ramallah-died-of-natural-causes-says-mea-101646760492124.htmlAjit SethM.Phil30th Cabinet Secretary of IndiaInstitute Lecture - Shri Ajit Kumar Seth Indian Institute of Technology, KanpurAmitabh KantMACEO of NITI AayogAmitabh RajanMA (History); PhD (Sociology)Home Secretary of Maharashtra,
Chairman of Reserve Bank of India Services BoardArvind GuptaPhD (School of International Studies)Deputy National Security Advisor of IndiaAshok TanwarFormer President of Indian Youth CongressAishe GhoshMA, M.PhilStudent ActivistMuhammed MuhsinPhD in Social WorkPolitician Communist Party of India, MLA - Kerala Legislative AssemblyDipsita DharStudent ActivistChandan KumarMaster in Computer ScienceStudent Activist Gurjit SinghLê Lương Minh13th Secretary General of ASEANJyotindra DixitPhD (School of International Studies)2nd National Security AdviserNirmala Sitharaman1984MA (Economics); M.Phil.Former Defense Minister of India Finance Minister, IndiaPalagummi SainathRenowned journalist, Ramon Magsaysay LaureatePrakash KaratM.Phil & PhDFormer General Secretary of Communist Party of India MarxistRanjit NayakMA (Sociology)World Bank's Chief for Kosovo Chief Adviser of Macedonia on International & EU affairsPradeep NarwalMA (History)INC Politician AICC SecretarySanjay HansdaMA (Economics)Executive Director of the Reserve Bank of IndiaShehla RashidMA (Sociology)student activistSitaram YechuryGeneral Secretary, Communist Party of India (Marxist)S. JaishankarMA (Political Science); M.Phil. & PhD in International RelationsIFS Officer, 30th Foreign Secretary of India Minister of External AffairsSyed IbrahimMA24th Director of Intelligence BureauVenu RajamonyMA in International RelationsIFS Officer. Former Press Secretary to President of India Former Indian Ambassador to Netherlands.
Humanities and Social Sciences NameClass YearDegreeNotabilityReferencesAbhijit Banerjee1983MA in EconomicsNobel laureate and Ford Foundation Professor at MITAnanth Kumar1990BA in German Award-winning German Writer in Kassel and Resident Writer of Royal City Gotha David Vumlallian ZouMA; M.Phil.historianMuzaffar Alam1977George V. Bobrinsky Professor of History at University of ChicagoSanjoy BhattacharyaMAhistorianBishnu MohapatraMphilPolitical Scientist and Poet Abhay Xaxa 2018 M.Phil; PhD (sociology) Human rights activist, poet and anthropologist
Military and police NameClass YearDegreeNotabilityReferencesR. Hari KumarChief of naval staff of the Indian NavyAnjana SinhaMaster of ArtsDirector of National Industrial Security AcademySoumen MitraMPhillPolice Commissioner of Kolkata
Science and Technology NameClass YearDegreeNotabilityReferencesAlok Bhattacharya1976PhDParasitologist and Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureateAmita Sehgal1982M.Sc.Molecular Biologist, ChronobiologistMember of National Academy of Sciences since 2016Apurva SarinCell biologist, N-Bios laureateArun Kumar Shukla2002M.Sc.Structural Biologist, N-Bios laureate, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureate, Infosys Prize laureateGaiti Hasan1980MPhilmicrobiologistSeyed E. Hasnain1980PhDbiologistSrinivasan Ramachandranbioinformatician, N-Bios laureateSuman Kumar DharMolecular biologist, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureateSomdatta Sinha1982PhDBiologist
Others
Brahma Chellaney, columnist and author on geostrategic affairs Harun Rashid Khan, Deputy Governor of Reserve Bank of India (2011 to 2016) Umesh Upadhyay, President & Director Media at Reliance Industries Pankaj Mishra, novelist and essayist.PankajMishra.com/About. Retrieved 2 December 2018. Ashok Kumar Sarangi, Chief Vigilance Officer and CGM-in-Charge, Reserve Bank of India Jawed Habib, hairdresser and businessman Geetanjali Shree, Novelist and short-story writer, winner of International Booker prize Asad Zaidi, Hindi poet, literary critic, publisher, and translator Vijoo Krishnan, General Secretary, All India Kissan Sabha Yogendra Yadav, Phsephologist, Founder member of Aam Aadmi Party . Sanal Edamaruku, Indian Rationalist Roji M. John, Minister for Higher Education, Government of Kerala
Faculty
+NameAffiliationNotabilityReferencesAnvita AbbiProfessor of LinguisticsAyesha KidwaiProfessor of Linguisticstheoretical linguist and Infosys Prize recipientBalaji Prakashbiochemist, N-Bios laureateBirendra Nath Mallick, Neurobiologist, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureateBrahm Shanker Srivastava, microbiologist, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureateDeepak KumarProfessor of Physics between 1988 and 2016physicist, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureateFranson ManjaliProfessor of linguistics.Joy PachuauProfessor of Historical studieshistorianKapil KapoorProfessor of Linguistics & English, Chairman Indian Institute of Advanced StudyKavita SinghProfessor of Art History between 2001 and 2023Mahendra P. LamaProfessor, JNUvice chancellor of Sikkim UniversityMakarand ParanjapeProfessor of English between 1999 and 2018author, poet, and director of Indian Institute of Advanced StudyMuchkund DubeyFormer Professor of International Relations17th Foreign Secretary of IndiaNivedita MenonProfessor of Political thought Pius MalekandathilFormer Professor of HistoryHistorian and authorPrabhat PatnaikFormer Professor of EconomicsPratiksha BaxiPushpesh PantProfessor of International relationsfood critic and writerRaja MohanRobert L. HolmesphilosopherSadhana NaithaniProfessor and coordinator of the Folklore Unit originated the term "colonizer-folklorist"Sanjay Puriheld various positions since 1987Statistical physicist, Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar laureateSyed Iqbal Hasnainglaciologist, writer, and climate change activistGopal GuruProfessor of Political Studies, Editor of Economic and Political WeeklyHe received Malcolm Adiseshiah Award for Distinguished Contribution to Development Studies for 2013–14Dwaipayan BhattacharyyaProfessor of Political StudiesPolitical Scientist Zoya HassanProfessor of Political StudiesMember of the National Commission for Minorities from 2006 to 2009, Political Scientist Ajay GudavarthyProfessor of Political StudiesBrahma PrakashProfessor of Theatre and Performance Studies School of Arts and Aesthetics Ira BhaskarProfessor of Cinema StudiesSchool of Arts and Aesthetics Rustom BharuchaProfessor of Theatre and Performance Studies School of Arts and Aesthetics Naman AhujaProfessor of Visual StudiesSchool of Arts and Aesthetics Jyotindra JainProfessor of Visual StudiesSchool of Arts and Aesthetics H.S. ShivaprakashProfessor of Theatre and Performance Studies School of Arts and Aesthetics
References