Shyama Prasad Mookerjee 121st Birth Anniversary

Tags: Person in news

The 121st birth anniversary of Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who served as the first Industry Minister of independent India, was observed on 6th July.

• Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu and PM Modi have paid tributes to Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee on his birth anniversary.

• Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee

• Syama Prasad Mookerjee was born on July 6, 1901 in Calcutta in a Bengali Hindu family.

• The name of his father was Ashutosh Mookerjee who was a judge of the High Court of Calcutta.

• His father was also Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta.

• He graduated in English in 1921 from Presidency College.

• In 1923, he also completed his MA in Bengali.

• Youngest Vice-Chancellor

• In 1934, he became the youngest Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University.

•  Rabindranath Tagore gave the convocation address in Bengali during his tenure as Vice-Chancellor.

• This marked the beginning of the end of English dominance over Bengali and other Indian languages.

• Political career

• He began his political career in 1929 when he entered the Bengal Legislative Council as a candidate of the Indian National Congress.

• However, the INC chose to boycott the legislature the following year and he resigned. 

• Thereafter, he contested as an independent candidate and was elected.

• In 1941–1942, he served as Bengal Province’s Finance Minister for A K Fazlul Haq’s Progressive Coalition government, which was formed as a result of the resignations of the Congress government.

• Syama Prasad Mookerjee joined the Hindu Mahasabha in Bengal in 1939 and became its acting president.

• He opposed India's policy of autonomy of Jammu & Kashmir. 

• He was arrested during Jana Sangh’s agitation against Kashmir policy and died during detention.

• His efforts resulted in the formal formation of the All India Bharatiya Jana Sangh in October 1950.

• He died on 23 June 1953.