Abhijit Banerjee's road to Nobel win included Tihar stint; Here's why

Indian American Abhijit Banerjee who won Nobel Prize in Economics on Monday has said that he was in Tihar Jail for 10 days. Back in February 2016, in an article written for a newspaper, Banerjee said that during 1983 students protest at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), he was jailed for 10 days at the Tihar Jail. Describing the series of events that landed him to the Tihar Jail, he said that the students 'gheraoed' the then Vice Chancellor's house. The protest was against the expulsion of the student union president and other students, he added. 

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"We were beaten (I was) and thrown into Tihar jail, charged not quite with sedition, but attempt to murder and the rest. The charges were eventually dropped thank God but not before we spent 10 days or so in Tihar," he said in the article. He also added: "What it undoubtedly was is an attempt by the State to establish the lines of authority. We are the boss they were telling us, shut up and behave." He had also alleged in his article that police action was backed by the then Congress government. 

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Nobel Prize for Economics

Abhijit Banerjee, along with Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer on Monday won Nobel Prize in Economics, for their work to eradicate global poverty. Banerjee who is a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor spoke at the University after winning the award. He said that the award is for the entire movement and he hopes that it will send a message of policy based on evidence and hard thinking. Banerjee has pursued his education at the University of Calcutta, Jawarharlal Nehru University, and acquired his Ph.D. in 1988 from Harvard University.

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Abhijit Banerjee's foundation

The 58-year old Nobel Laureate founded the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-Pal) in 2003 along with Duflo, with the mission to reduce poverty by ensuring policy is informed by scientific evidence. According to the foundation, the members use research, policy outreach, and training to tackle poverty issues. J-PAL has also translated research into action, for the promotion of the culture of evidence-informed policymaking worldwide. The foundation's policy analysis and outreach have also helped governments, NGOs, etc to apply evidence from randomised evaluations to their work.

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