Bhikhu Chhotalal Parekh (Baron Parekh; born 4 January 1935) is a British

political theorist A political theorist is someone who engages in constructing or evaluating political theory, including political philosophy. Theorists may be academics or independent scholars. Ancient * Aristotle * Chanakya * Cicero * Confucius * Mencius * ...

, academic, and

life peer In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the peerage whose titles cannot be inherited, in contrast to hereditary peers. Life peers are appointed by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister. With the exception of the D ...

. He is a Labour Party

member of the House of Lords This is a list of current members of the House of Lords, the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Current sitting members Lords Spiritual Twenty-six bishops of the Church of England sit in the House of Lords: the Archbishops ...

. He was Professor of Political Theory at the

University of Hull The University of Hull is a public research university in Kingston upon Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It was founded in 1927 as University College Hull. The main university campus is located in Hull and is home to the Hu ...

from 1982 to 2001, and Professor of

Political Philosophy Political philosophy studies the theoretical and conceptual foundations of politics. It examines the nature, scope, and Political legitimacy, legitimacy of political institutions, such as State (polity), states. This field investigates different ...

at the

University of Westminster The University of Westminster is a public university, public university based in London, United Kingdom. Founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution, it was the first Polytechnic (United Kingdom), polytechnic to open in London. The Po ...

from 2001 to 2009. He served as president of the

Academy of Social Sciences The Academy of Social Sciences (AcSS) is a representative body for social sciences in the United Kingdom. The academy promotes social science through its sponsorship of the Campaign for Social Science, its links with Government on a variety of m ...

from 2003 to 2008.

Early life and education

Parekh was born in the village of Amalsad in the province of

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

, India;Biography
as the speaker for the Justice KT Desai Memorial Lecture 2009, Bombay Bar Association. Retrieved 25 March 2010. his father was a goldsmith with a basic education. Parekh was admitted to the

University of Bombay University of Mumbai is a public university, public List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, state university in Mumbai. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, largest univ ...

at the age of 15, and earned a bachelor's degree there in 1954 and a Master's in 1956. He began his graduate studies at the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...

in 1959, and received his PhD in 1966.

Career

He taught at the

and at the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

before finding a long-term position at the

. Between 1981 and 1984 he was Vice-Chancellor at the

Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, formerly Baroda College, is a public university in the city of Vadodara, Gujarat, India. Originally established as a college in 1881, it became a public university on April 30, 1949 and was renamed after ...

in India. He also held the Centennial Professorship in the Centre for the Study of Global Governance at the London School of Economics and a professorship of political philosophy at the

. In 2002, he served as president of the

Academy of Learned Societies in the Social Sciences An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of tertiary education. The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, founded approximately 386 BC at Akademia, a sanctuary of Athena, the go ...

. Parekh has also served on the

Commission for Racial Equality In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...

(including a spell as vice-chairman) and has held membership of a number of bodies concerned with issues of racial equality and multiculturalism – most notably as Chairman of the Commission on the Future of Multi-Ethnic Britain from 1998 to 2000. The report of this body (often referred to as the "Parekh Report") has been the basis for much of the debate on multiculturalism in the UK in the early 21st century.

House of Lords

He was appointed a

on 10 May 2000 as Baron Parekh, of

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually shortened to Hull, is a historic maritime city and unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Est ...

in the East Riding of

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

. Parekh sits in the Lords as a Labour Party peer. From July 2001 to December 2003, he was a member of the

Joint Committee on Human Rights The Joint Committee on Human Rights is a joint committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to consider human rights issues in the United Kingdom. Membership , the members of the committee are as follows: Se ...

Publications

* * * * * * * * * * He also wrote an account of "The Rushdie Affair and the British Press; Some Salutary Lessons" for the Commission for Racial Equality in 1990. *''Colour, Culture and Consciousness: Immigrant Intellectuals in Britain'', Allen & Unwin, 1974,

Awards and honours

Parekh was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...

(FRSA) in 1988, and a Fellow of the Academy of Learned Societies in the Social Sciences (FAcSS) in 1999. In 2003, he was elected a

Fellow of the British Academy Fellowship of the British Academy (post-nominal letters FBA) is an award granted by the British Academy to leading academics for their distinction in the humanities and social sciences. The categories are: # Fellows – scholars resident in t ...

(FBA), the United Kingdom's

national academy A national academy is an organizational body, usually operating with state financial support and approval, that co-ordinates scholarly research activities and standards for academic disciplines, and serves as a public policy advisors, research ...

for the humanities and social sciences. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by the

University of Essex The University of Essex is a public university, public research university in Essex, England. Established by royal charter in 1965, it is one of the original plate glass university, plate glass universities. The university comprises three camp ...

in 2003.Honorary Graduates: Orations and responses – Lord Parekh of Kingston upon Hull

, 9 July 2003. Retrieved 25 March 2010. In 2008, he was awarded an Honorary DUniv From The University of Hull. On 11 July 2011, Parekh was awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Social Sciences (DSoc Sci) from

Nottingham Trent University Nottingham Trent University (NTU) is a public research university located in Nottingham, England. Its origins date back to 1843 with the establishment of the Nottingham School of Design, Nottingham Government School of Design, which still opera ...

. On 20 July 2011, Parekh was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy from

Edge Hill University Edge Hill University is a campus-based public university in Ormskirk, Lancashire, England. The university, which originally opened in 1885 as Edge Hill College, was the first non-denominational teacher training college for women in England, befo ...

. He was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of Bristol in July 2022. He was awarded the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan (IAST: ''Padma Bhūṣaṇa'', lit. 'Lotus Decoration') is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 Januar ...

by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

in 2007.

Personal life

Parekh has three sons, including Anant Parekh, they were all awarded

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

s to study at the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parekh, Bhikhu Parekh, Baron 1935 births Academics of the London School of Economics Academics of the University of Hull Academics of the University of Westminster British political philosophers Indian emigrants to England Labour Party (UK) life peers Living people People from Vadodara Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in literature & education Fellows of the British Academy Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom Recipients of Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Life peers created by Elizabeth II British people of Indian descent British people of Gujarati descent Commissioners for Racial Equality