MAM
Rahul Shrivastava returns to NDTV as consulting editor
Four decades of political reporting come full circle at the network he once defined
NEW DELHI: Some homecomings need no introduction, and Rahul Shrivastava’s return to NDTV is exactly that. The veteran journalist, who spent nearly two decades as the channel’s political editor between 1999 and 2017, is back, this time in the more elevated role of consulting editor. For a network doubling down on political and national affairs coverage ahead of a busy news cycle, the timing could hardly be sharper.
Shrivastava’s credentials read like a checklist of Indian political journalism’s greatest hits. Close to four decades across print, television and digital, stints at Jist News and the India Today Group, and that long, defining innings at NDTV itself. He has built a reputation for incisive analysis and interviews that cut through the noise, having covered some of the most consequential turns in the country’s political history. A B.A. Honours in economics from Delhi University rounds off the credentials of a journalist as comfortable with policy detail as with political theatre.
Rahul Kanwal, NDTV’s chief executive and editor-in-chief, did not hold back on the welcome, calling Shrivastava one of the country’s most experienced political voices and pointing to his grasp of India’s institutions, personalities and electoral terrain as a genuine asset for the network’s coverage going forward. Shrivastava, for his part, struck a similarly upbeat note, describing this as a significant juncture for Indian politics and journalism alike, and one he is keen to help audiences navigate.
In his new innings, Shrivastava will not be confined to the edit desk. Expect him across reporting, anchoring and analysis, NDTV clearly banking on a familiar face to sharpen its political edge just when the news agenda needs it most.
