Mark Tully, Voice Of India For The World, Dies
Best-known foreign correspondent in the India departed
By : Bhaskar Hari Sharma
Update: 2026-01-25 13:58 GMT
New Delhi: From the Bangladesh Liberation War to Operation Blue Star, Mark Tully was on the ground during many defining moments of modern Indian history. The veteran journalist, who headed the BBC’s New Delhi bureau for over two decades and became one of the most recognisable foreign correspondents in India, died at a Delhi hospital on Sunday after a prolonged illness. He was 90.
Tully passed away at Max Super Speciality Hospital, Saket, at 2.35 pm due to multi-organ failure following a stroke, hospital officials said. He had been admitted on January 21 under the nephrology department. Senior journalist and close friend Satish Jacob confirmed his death.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi led tributes, describing Tully as “a towering voice of journalism” whose deep engagement with India helped shape public understanding of the country. “His reporting and insights have left an enduring mark on public discourse,” the Prime Minister said in a post on X.
Born in Calcutta, now Kolkata, on October 24, 1935, Tully built a career that bridged Britain and India. As BBC New Delhi bureau chief for 22 years, he reported extensively on India’s politics, conflicts and social transformations during a turbulent period.
His coverage included the 1971 Bangladesh war, the Emergency of 1975-77, the execution of former Pakistan Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in 1979, Operation Blue Star, the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi in 1991, and the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992.
Operation Blue Star and the Punjab crisis were later chronicled in his first major book, Amritsar: Mrs Gandhi’s Last Battle (1985), co-authored with Satish Jacob. He went on to write several widely read books on India, including No Full Stops in India, India in Slow Motion, and The Heart of India, reflecting his deep interest in rural India and everyday life.
Tully also presented the BBC Radio 4 programme Something Understood and was associated with a number of documentaries on subjects ranging from the British Raj to the Indian Railways.
In recognition of his contribution to journalism and his role in interpreting India to global audiences, he was knighted in 2002 and awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 2005.