Harpal Brar

Harpal Brar
Brar speaking at the 70th anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in Birmingham, 2015.
Born	(1939-10-05)October 5, 1939 Muktsar, Punjab, India
Died	January 25, 2025(2025-01-25) (aged 85) Mohali, Punjab, India
Nationality	British-Indian
Education	University of Westminster
Occupation(s)	Former Chairman of the CPGB-ML, Businessman, University lecturer
Known for	Anti-imperialist activism, CPGB-ML founder, support of Irish republicanism and Palestinian solidarity
Notable work	Inquilab Zindabad: India's Liberation Struggle (2014)
Political party	Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist-Leninist)
Children	Joti Brar (daughter) Ranjeet Brar (son)

Harpal Brar (5 October 1939 – 25 January 2025) was an Indian communist, politician, writer and businessman, based in the United Kingdom. He was the founder and former chairman of the Communist Party of Great Britain (Marxist–Leninist), a role from which he stood down in 2018.

Born in Muktsar, Punjab, British India, Brar lived and worked in Britain from 1962, first as a student, then as a lecturer in law at Harrow College of Higher Education (later merged into the renamed University of Westminster), and later in the textile business. Brar owned buildings in West London which he used for CPGB-ML party activity, and he part-owned an online shop called "Madeleine Trehearne and Harpal Brar" which sells shawls.

Brar was the editor of a left-wing political newspaper Lalkar, the former journal of the Indian Workers' Association. Brar has written multiple books on subjects such as communism, Indian republicanism, imperialism, anti-Zionism, anti-colonialism, and the British General Strike. He was also a co-founder of the Hands off China Campaign.

Brar died in Mohali, Punjab, India on 25 January, 2025, at the age of 85.^[1]