History of Hindustan Times in Timeline

By Popular Timelines Editorial Team · Updated: May 9, 2025

Hindustan Times is a prominent Indian English-language daily newspaper headquartered in Delhi. It serves as the flagship publication of HT Media Limited, which is controlled by the Birla family. Shobhana Bhartia, daughter of K. K. Birla, owns the newspaper.

September 1924: Hindustan Times first issue

On September 26, 1924, Mahatma Gandhi performed the opening ceremony, and the first issue of Hindustan Times was published from Naya Bazar, Delhi. The issue included writings from C. F. Andrews and Cattamanchi Ramalinga Reddy.

1928: Gandhi chose a new editor

In 1928, Mahatma Gandhi appointed K. M. Panikkar as the new editor of the Hindustan Times.

1986: Shobhana Bhartia joins Hindustan Times

In 1986, Shobhana Bhartia joined Hindustan Times and became the first female chief executive of a national newspaper.

July 2005: Mumbai edition launched

On July 14, 2005, Hindustan Times launched its Mumbai edition.

2008: Sanjoy Narayan editor in chief

In 2008, Sanjoy Narayan became editor in chief of the Hindustan Times, a position he held until 2016.

2012: Brand Trust Report 2012

In 2012, Hindustan Times was ranked 2971st among India's most trusted brands according to The Brand Trust Report.

2013: Brand Trust Report 2013

In 2013, Hindustan Times was ranked 434th among India's most trusted brands, according to the Brand Trust Report 2013.

2014: Brand Trust Report 2014

In 2014, according to the Brand Trust Report, Hindustan Times was ranked 360th among India's most trusted brands.

2016: Hate Tracker and Bobby Ghosh's departure

After the 2016 LoC strike in September, Shobhana Bhartia reportedly started getting calls from the PM's office and Amit Shah. Attention focused on the Hate Tracker, a crowd-sourced database on the Hindustan Times website. Editor Bobby Ghosh left the newspaper abruptly afterwards.

2016: Sanjoy Narayan editor in chief

In 2016, Sanjoy Narayan stepped down as editor in chief of the Hindustan Times, having held the position since 2008.

November 2017: Circulation of Hindustan Times

In November 2017, the Audit Bureau of Circulations reported Hindustan Times had a circulation of 993,645 copies.

2017: Reports on collusion and offshore entity

In 2017, Frontline magazine reported that Hindustan Times' editor Shishir Gupta was colluding with the government. The Indian Express also reported in 2017 that Hindustan Times Limited was linked to an offshore entity called Go4i.com, with Bhartia and her son Priyavat as directors.