Derek O'Brien (politician) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Derek O'Brien
|
|
|---|---|
O'Brien in 2019
|
|
| Leader of Trinamool Congress in Rajya Sabha | |
| Assumed office 19 August 2011 |
|
| Appointed by | Mamata Banerjee |
| Preceded by | Mukul Roy |
| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha | |
| Assumed office 19 August 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | Arjun Kumar Sengupta |
| Constituency | West Bengal |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 13 March 1961 Calcutta, West Bengal, India (present-day Kolkata, India) |
| Political party | All India Trinamool Congress |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 1 |
| Parent | Neil O'Brien |
| Alma mater | Scottish Church College (BA) |
| Occupation | |
Derek O'Brien, born on March 13, 1961, is a well-known Indian politician, TV personality, and quiz master. He is a Member of Parliament in India's upper house, the Rajya Sabha, representing the state of West Bengal. He is a member of the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) party. Derek O'Brien serves as the main national spokesperson and the leader of the AITC party in the Rajya Sabha. Before becoming a politician, he was famous for hosting the Bournvita Quiz Contest and other popular quiz shows.
Contents
About Derek O'Brien
Derek O'Brien comes from an Irish family background. His family's history in India goes back to the 1860s when an Irish soldier arrived. His family later married into the Bengali community. Derek O'Brien lives in Kolkata and speaks, reads, and writes Bengali fluently.
His grandfather, Amos O'Brien, was the first Christian to lead the English Department at Banaras Hindu University. He also taught at Ravenshaw College in Cuttack.
Education and Family
Derek O'Brien attended St. Xavier's Collegiate School in Kolkata. He also spent a short time at St. Columba's School, Delhi before studying at Scottish Church College in Kolkata for two years.
He is the oldest of three sons born to Joyce and Neil O'Brien (1934–2016). His father, Neil O'Brien, was the chairman and managing director of Oxford University Press India. He also led the Anglo-Indian community for two decades.
Derek O'Brien is married to Tonuca Basu, who is a doctor in Brooklyn, New York. He was previously married to Rila Banerjee, and they have a daughter together.
Career as a Quizmaster
Derek O'Brien's first job was as a journalist for Sportsworld magazine. After that, he joined the advertising agency Ogilvy in 1984. He became the Creative Head for their Kolkata and Delhi offices.
At the same time, he started his career as a quizmaster and quiz show host. His father, Neil O'Brien, who hosted India's first open quiz in 1967, introduced him to quizzing.
Hosting Quizzes
In 1988, Derek O'Brien hosted his first quizzes across India as a professional quizmaster. These included the Bata North Star Quiz and the Maggi Quiz for Schools. In 1990, he teamed up with Economic Times for the Brand Equity Quiz, which was for businesses.
In 1991, he left Ogilvy and started his own company, Big Ideas. This company, now called Derek O'Brien and Associates, focuses on knowledge, education, and publishing.
Derek O'Brien has hosted quizzes in many countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and the United States. In 2008, he even traveled to Pakistan to host a TV quiz for schools. He won the Indian Television Academy award for Best Host in a Television Gameshow for three years in a row (2003–2005).
Public Speaking
O'Brien has given talks at famous universities like Harvard, Yale, and Columbia in the United States. He has also spoken at many top Indian institutions, including the Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).
Political Journey
Derek O'Brien joined the Trinamool Congress party in 2004. At that time, the party was not in power in West Bengal. He later shared that he was inspired by the leader of the Trinamool Congress, Mamata Banerjee, who is now the Chief Minister of Bengal. He felt she was the only one who could defeat the government led by the CPI(M) at the time.
Becoming a Spokesperson
O'Brien quickly became a spokesperson for the Trinamool Congress. He was known as a rare politician in the party who came from a professional, English-speaking background. He gained national attention during Mamata Banerjee's protest against the CPI(M) government's attempt to take land in Singur in 2006. He also played a key role leading up to the 2009 Lok Sabha election, where the Trinamool Congress defeated the CPI(M) for the first time since 1977. He was a pioneer in using social media for his party.
Derek O'Brien often appears on news TV shows and shares his views on political issues. He used to write a weekly column for NDTV, and his articles have been published in major newspapers like Times of India, Hindustan Times, and Indian Express.
In 2011, after the Trinamool Congress won the West Bengal assembly election, O'Brien was elected to the Rajya Sabha.
Member of Parliament in Rajya Sabha
He became a Member of Parliament on August 19, 2011. He is one of 16 MPs elected to the Rajya Sabha from West Bengal. In 2012, the Trinamool Congress named him as their Chief Whip in the Rajya Sabha. A whip helps ensure party members vote as a group.
In 2012, O'Brien voted in the 2012 Indian presidential election to choose India's 13th President of India. His vote is believed to be the first presidential vote cast by an elected member of the Anglo-Indian community. This is because members of this community were usually nominated to Parliament and other assemblies, not elected, and thus couldn't vote in presidential elections.
In 2012, he also spoke at the United Nations General Assembly as part of the Indian parliamentary group.
Parliamentary Committees
From September 1, 2017, to September 12, 2019, he was the Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism, and Culture. As of July 2025, he is a member of several important parliamentary committees. These include the General Purposes Committee, the Business Advisory Committee, the Ethics Committee, the Transport, Tourism and Culture Committee, and the Human Resource Development Committee.
He has also been a member of special committees that looked at specific issues, such as the Goods and Services Tax Bill and the Citizenship Act Amendment Bill. He has spoken in Parliament on many topics, including demonetisation, net neutrality, Jammu and Kashmir, railways, and juvenile justice.
Second Term in Rajya Sabha
Derek O'Brien's second term as an MP in the Rajya Sabha began on August 19, 2017, and ended on August 18, 2023.
On September 20, 2020, during a discussion on the Farm Reform Bill in the Rajya Sabha, Derek O'Brien protested. He, along with other members, created a disturbance. This led to his suspension for one week, along with eight other MPs, due to their behavior.
He was suspended again on December 21, 2021, while protesting against the Elections Law (Amendment) Bill, 2021.
On December 14, 2023, he was suspended from the Rajya Sabha again after a disagreement with the Chairman, Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Parliamentary Committees (Second Term)
He is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs. On January 6, 2022, he wrote to Anand Sharma, the head of the committee, to discuss an alleged app called "Tek Fog". He stated that this app "has serious consequences and could put national security at risk." He also wrote that the app "is able to get into encrypted messaging platforms and secure social media conversations to heavily control and use stories on those platforms."
Other Work
Derek O'Brien is also an author. His books include the bestseller Inside Parliament: Views for the Front Row, Derek Introduces the Constitution and Parliament of India, and My Way, which is a motivational book. He also wrote Speak Up Speak Out, a collection of pieces for public speaking, and several reference, quiz, and textbooks.
