Shashi Tharoor is a man of remarkable intelligence. Yet it was his gift of the gab that persuaded Mr. Modi to give him the leadership of a team touring the world to explain India’s standpoint on the how and why of Operation Sindoor, where India nearly brought the subcontinent close to war. Even the Hindutva parade paused its abuse of Tharoor long enough to praise him.
Relying on the work of British economist Angus Maddison (1926–2010), a pioneer of quantitative macroeconomic history, Tharoor has often said on public platforms that India’s share of world GDP stood at 23–27% in the 17th and 18th centuries. By the time the British left in 1947, he notes, India’s share had plummeted to ~4%.
Not just Tharoor; Modi’s minions have been parading these figures too.
Accepting Maddison’s figures, in the 17th century—when the Mughals ruled much of India—our share of global output was about 23%. Even as Mughal power waned by the mid-18th century, it was still in the 23–27% band. Then, through relentless extraction by the British, our share was down to ~4% when they finally left. Right? Right.
Using this logic, take a look at our current performance as a aslf-ruled Nation.
The Union of India (see Article 300 of the Constitution) has been governed by elected governments for 78 years (and as a Republic for 75).
- Current growth projections:
IMF (FY 2024–25): 6.4%
World Bank (FY 2024–25): 6.3%
- Taking the better figure, India’s GDP for the year ending March 2025 is placed at about US$ 4.19 trillion.
- World GDP (2024, IMF): US$ 110.06 trillion.
- India’s current share of world GDP (by your working):
- 4.19/110.06 X100 – 3.8%
So, going by Tharoor’s own framing, after 78 years of self-rule, India’s share of world output is ~3.8%, which is 0.2 percentage points lower than the ~4% at Independence.
I am not suggesting that the Britons were better rulers than the Congress party, the coalition mixes, or the Hindutva party that ruled in tandem. I am saying that people of Dr. Tharoor’s eminence and genuine academic credentials should apply their minds before shooting off their mouths—especially when brandishing historical statistics to sell present-day triumphalism.
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