Lala Lajpat Rai

Lala Lajpat Rai
Date of Birth	:	Jan 28, 1865
Date of Death	:	Nov 17, 1928
Place of Birth	:	Moga district

Lala Lajpat Rai was an Indian politician who is chiefly remembered as a leader in the Indian fight for freedom from the British Raj. The freedom fighter was popularly known as Punjab Kesari (Lion of the Punjab). Rai was born on January 28, 1865 in village Dhudi Ke, in present day Moga district of Punjab, India. He was the eldest son of Munshi Radha Kishan Azad and Gulab Devi. His father had a chequered relationship with Hinduism - having converted to Islam and then reverted back to Hinduism, which had a lasting effect on Rai's attitude towards religions other than Hinduism. He was one of the three most prominent Hindu Nationalist members of the Indian National Congress, who fought for, and gave their lives during the Indian independence movement in the first half of the twentieth century. The other two were Bal Gangadhar Tilak of Maharashtra and Bipin Chandra Pal of Bengal. Collectively, they were dubbed Lal-Bal-Pal. Rai was also a member of the Hindu Maha Sabha, a forerunner of the current day Hindu nationalist party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The trio wanted a degree of self-government that was considered radical at the time. They were the first Indian leaders to demand complete political independence. Rai led the Punjab protests against the Amritsar Massacre (1919) and the Non-Cooperation Movement (1919 - 1922).

He was repeatedly arrested. Rai however disagreed with Mohandas Gandhi's suspension of the movement due to the Chauri Chaura incident, and formed the Congress Independence Party, which was particularly pro-Hindu in voice and policy. He was not only a good orator but also a prolific and versatile writer. His journal Arya Gazette concentrated mainly on subjects related to the Arya Samaj. Bande Mataram and People, contained his inspiring speeches to end oppression by the foreign rulers. He founded the Servants of the People Society, which worked for the freedom movement as well as for social reform in the country. He also wrote an autobiography in English titled The Story of My Life.Lajpat Rai came early under the influence of the dynamic Hindu reformer, Dayanand Saraswati, the founder of the Arya Samaj. In conjunction with like minded people like Mahatma Hans Raj and Lala Sain Das, he was instrumental in laying the foundations of a strong Arya Samaj presence among the Punjabi Hindu urban populace. A strong believer in leading by example, he himself led a procession to demonstrate against the Simon Commission, which was to prove fatal for him. He was made the target of a brutal lathi charge in which he was injured badly. A meeting was held the same evening where he spoke with such vigour that his words, "Every blow aimed at me is a nail in the coffin of British imperialism", became historic. Though he recovered from the fever and pain within three days, yet his health had received a permanent setback and on November 17, 1928, he succumbed to the fatal injuries. The Lajpat Nagar , Lajpat Nagar Central Market, Lala Lajpat Rai Hall of Residence at Indian Institue of Technology Kharagpur and Lala Lajpat Rai Institute of Engineering and Technology, Moga are named in his honor.

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Muhammad Iqbal

Muhammad Iqbal
Date of Birth	:	Nov 9, 1877
Date of Death	:	Apr 21, 1938
Place of Birth	:	India

Muhammad Iqbal, was an Indian Muslim philosopher, scholar, poet, lawyer, politician, and reformer who worked for the unity of Muslims of the world, and was the spiritual founder of Pakistan. He produced philosophical works in Urdu, Persian, and English, which have also been translated into many other languages. As a forerunner of the Pakistan Movement, he headed the All-India Muslim League in early 1930s and called upon Muhammad Ali Jinnah to lead the Indian Muslims towards the formation of a Muslim state. He was not able to see the creation of Pakistan since he died nine years before its creation. He is commonly referred to as Allama Iqbal (Allama: "Scholar"), and is also known as Muffakir-e-Pakistan ("The Thinker of Pakistan"), Hakeem-ul-Ummat ("The Sage of Ummah"), and Shair-i-Mashriq ("The Poet of the East"). His birthday is commemorated each year in Pakistan as "Iqbal Day", and is a national holiday.
Muhammad Iqbal was born in Sialkot. His father, Shaikh Nur Muhammad was a tailor in Sialkot, whose devotion to Islam, especially its mystical aspects, gained him respect among his Sufi peers and other associates. His wife, Imam Bibi was also a devout Muslim. The couple instilled a deep religious consciousness in all their five children. According to most historians, Sahaj Ram Sapru (who converted to Islam and became Shaikh Muhammad Rafiq), a Brahmin official in the State of Kashmir during the administration of the Afghan Governor Azim Khan was Iqbal's grandfather; the link has never been positively confirmed, however. The known siblings of Iqbal include: an elder brother, Shaikh Ata Muhammad ( 1940, Sialkot), and four sisters, Taleb Bibi ( 1902, Sialkot), Karim Bibi ( 1958, Sialkot), Fatima Bibi ( Sialkot), and Zainab Bibi ( Sialkot). Iqbal completed his initial education in Sialkot. His potential as a poet was first recognized by one of his early teachers, Syed Mir Hasan. Iqbal did his matriculation from the Scotch Mission School, Sialkot in 1892 and studied Liberal Arts at the Scotch Mission College (Murray College), Sialkot from where he passed his intermediate examination in 1895. It was also in 1892 that Iqbal was married to Karim Bibi ( 1946, Lahore), the daughter of an affluent Gujarati physician. They had three children: a daughter, Mi'raj Begam ( 1914), was born to Karim Bibi in 1895; a son, Aftab Iqbal ( 1979, Karachi), was born in 1899 (this son also studied abroad and became a lawyer but they were no longer on speaking terms in his later life); another son, born to Karim Bibi, died soon after birth in 1901. The couple separated in 1916, but Iqbal provided financial support to Karim Bibi until he died in 1938. In 1895, after completing his studies at the Scotch Mission School, and Murray College, Sialkot, Iqbal studied Philosophy and Arabic and English Literature at Government College, Lahore, from where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1897. He was an excellent student, graduating cum laude and winning a gold medal for being the only candidate who passed the final examination (in second division, stood first in Arabic Literature). Meanwhile, he continued writing poetry. Iqbal then studied Philosophy at Government College, Lahore, from where he received his Master of Arts Degree (in third division) in 1899. He received a gold medal as he was the only succesful candidate in Philosophy. By this time he had already begun to make his mark in the literary circles of Lahore. While studying for his Master of Arts Degree, Iqbal became acquainted with a figure who was to have a strong influence on his intellectual development. Sir Thomas Arnold, a scholar of modern philosophy, became a bridge between the East and the West for Iqbal. It was Thomas Arnold who inspired him to pursue higher studies in Europe after his Master of Arts Degree. Another notable influence on him was Sir Syed Ahmad Khan. In 1899, Iqbal was appointed a Reader in Arabic, Oriental College, Lahore. In 1903, he become an Assistant Professor of Philosophy and English Literature at Government College, Lahore. In 1905, Iqbal went to Europe and resumed his studies (B.A.) at Trinity College, Cambridge University while, simultaneously, preparing for his doctoral dissertation and studying law at Lincoln's Inn. While at Cambridge, he crossed paths with other great scholars who, further, influenced his scholastic development. Under their guidance, Iqbal refined his already considerable intellect and widened his mental horizon. He obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Trinity College, Cambridge University in 1907 and earned a Ph.D. in Philisophy from the Faculty of Philosophy of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich, Germany also in 1907 under the supervision of Professor Dr. Friedrich Hommel with a thesis titled: "The Development of Metaphysics in Persia", his only other English work being The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam in 1928. He qualified as barrister-at-law from Lincoln's Inn in 1908. While in Europe, he started writing his poetry in Persian as well, because it allowed him to reach a wider audience, such as Iran and Afghanistan; he, finally, decided on sticking to Urdu, however, since most Indians did not understand Persian. It was while in England that he first joined politics. Following the formation of the All-India Muslim League in 1906, Iqbal was elected to the executive committee of the Muslim League's British chapter in 1908. Together with two other leaders, Syed Hassan Bilgrami and Syed Amir Ali, he also sat on the subcommittee which drafted the constitution of Muslim League. Upon his return to British India in 1908, Iqbal embarked on simultaneous careers in law, academics, and poetry. Of the three pursuits, he excelled in what was his true calling and first love: poetry. There is a widely held belief that had the administration of the Government College, Lahore been more generous with its monthly salary and academic freedom, Iqbal would have been as brilliant an academic as he was a poet. In fact, it was the financial considerations that forced him to relinquish his position as an assistant professor at Government College, Lahore in 1909 to take up a full-time career as a lawyer. But he did not earn much as a lawyer either, although, he could have. Instead of concentrating on the profession, he preferred to divide his time between the law and his own intellectual and spiritual development. In 1911, Iqbal resigned from Professorship, but continued to act as Examiner. Although his main interests were largely scholastic, Iqbal could not remain unconcerned with the political situation of his country and the political fortunes of the Muslim population of British India. Mohammad Ali (Jauhar) had died in January 1931 and Muhammad Ali Jinnah had moved to London, the responsibility of providing a proper leadership to the British Indian Muslims, naturally, fell on him. He had to assume this responsibility till Muhammad Ali Jinnah returned to British India in 1935. In 1931 and 1932 he represented the Muslim population of British India in the Round Table Conferences held in England to discuss the issue of the political future of India. Ealier, in a 1930 lecture, Iqbal suggested the creation of a separate state for the Muslims of India. Although Iqbal died in 1938, nine years before the formation of Pakistan in 1947, it was his ideas that have been the main force behind the creation of Pakistan. Iqbal ceased practising law in 1934 as his 1934 health deteriorated. In 1935, he was granted pension by the Nawab of Bhopal. Iqbal died in Lahore, British India (in what, after 1947, became a part of (Pakistan). His tomb is located in the space between the entrance of the Badshahi Mosque and the Lahore Fort (which face each other) in that city. The Government of Pakistan maintains an official guard at the mausoleum.

His Writings

Poetry

Saare Jahan Se Achcha (The best place in the world) (1904/1905)
Asrar-i-Khudi (The Secrets of the Self) (1915)
Rumuz-i-Bekhudi (The Secrets of Selflessness) (1918)
Payam-i-Mashriq (Message from the East) (1923)
Bang-i-Dara (The Call of the Bell) (1924)
Zabur-i-Ajam (Persian Psalms) (1927)
Javid Nama (Book of Eternity) (1932)
Bal-i-Jibril (Gabriel's Wing) (1935)
Zarb-i-Kalim (The Rod of the Moses) (1936)
Pas Chih Bayad Kard ay Aqwam-i-Sharq (What Should Then Be Done O People of the East) (1936)
Armaghan-i-Hijaz (Gift from Hijaz) (1938)

Prose

Ilm Al-Iqtisad (The subject of Economics) (1903)
The Development of Metaphysics in Persia (1908)
The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam (1930)

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Srinivasa Iyengar

Srinivasa Iyengar
Date of Birth	:	1874
Date of Death	:	May 19, 1941
Place of Birth	:	Madras

S. Srinivasa Iyengar was a distinguished lawyer, Indian freedom fighter and political leader. The son of an orthodox Vaishnava brahmin and respected landowner of Ramanathapuram district, Srinivasa Iyengar was born in 1874 in the erstwhile Madras Presidency. Attending college, he trained to become a lawyer, specializing in constitutional law. Srinivasa Iyengar commenced practice the Madras High Court in 1898, and advanced to the top of the profession in a short time. His intimate knowledge of Hindu Dharmasastra and of the great classics of jurisprudence and constitutional law coupled with his original inquiring mind, made him a legal thinker in his own right and his edition of Mayne's Hindu Law (1939) was hailed as a classic. Besides law, Srinivasa Iyengar's other interest were education, social reform, and politics. Among his early influences were Sir Sankaran Nair, C. Vijayaraghavachariar, two former Congress leaders. He was also an admirer of Gopal Krishna Gokhale (in whose name he endowed a prize) and later of Mahatma Gandhi. Upon the commencement of the Non-Cooperation Movement, Iyengar resigned the office of Advocate General and joined the Indian National Congress. He presided over the Madras Provincial Conference (1920) at Tirunelveli, gave up his princely practice at the Bar, resigned the membership of the Legislative Council (to which he had been returned by the Registered Graduates) returned his titles to the Government and took a leading part in Congress affairs. Iyengar actively participated in the Congress sessions from Ahmedabad (1921) to Lahore (1929) and gave an unparalleled lead to the Congress in Madras for about ten years. After the Congress had decided on Council-Entry he led the party to victory in Madras in 1926 and was himself elected from Madras to the Central Assembly and also acted as Leader for a time when Motilal Nehru was away from India.

Srinivasa lyengar presided over the Guwahati session of the Congress in 1926. Iyengar worked hard to deliver a resolution upholding Hindu-Muslim unity, bringing about a temporary political agreement between the political leaders of the two communities. He published Swaraj Constitution, in 1927, outlining a federal scheme of government for future India. When the All-Parties Report (known as the Nehru Report) was published in 1928 outlining a constitution for India in terms of Dominion status, Srinivasa Iyengar organised the Independence League with himself as President and Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhas Chandra Bose as leading members. The differences between Motilal Nehru and Srinivasa Iyengar on the issue of dominion status versus independence became acute during 1929, and although it was decided finally in favour of Independence at the Lahore Congress in December 1929, Srinivasa lyengar himself decided to retire from active public life early in 1930. Iyenger made a brief return to political life in 1939, upon the outbreak of World War II. He died suddenly on May 19, 1941, at his residence in Madras.

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Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya

Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya
Date of Birth	:	Nov 24, 1880
Date of Death	:	-
Place of Birth	:	Andhra Pradesh

Dr. Bhogaraju Pattabhi Sitaramayya born on November 24th, 1880 in Gundugolanu village, West Godavari District in Andhra Pradesh, India was an Indian freedom fighter and political leader in the state of Andhra Pradesh. Pattabhi who had a BA degree in Madras Christian College, fulfilled his ambition to become a medical practitioner by securing a M.B.C.M. degree. He started his practice as a doctor in the coastal town of Machilipatnam. He left his lucrative practice to join the freedom fighting movement. He was recruited to run for the presidency of the Indian National Congress as the candidate closest to Mohandas Gandhi, against the more-radical Subhas Bose in 1939.
He lost owing to Bose's rising popularity and the belief that Pattabhi favored the inclusion of Tamil-majority districts in a future Telegu state in independent India. Serving on the Congress Working Committee when Quit India was launched in 1942, Pattabhi was arrested with the entire committee and incarcerated for three years without outside contact in the fort in Ahmednagar, Maharashtra. During this time he maintained a detailed diary of day-to-day life during imprisonment, which was published later as Feathers and Stones. He ran successfully for Congress presidency in 1948, winning with the support of Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister of India. Pattabhi also served as the Governor of Madhya Pradesh. He established Andhra Bank in Machilipatnam on 28 November 1923. Andhra Bank is currently one of the major commercial banks of India.

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Krishna Menon

Krishna Menon
Date of Birth	:	May 3, 1897
Date of Death	:	Oct 6, 1974
Place of Birth	:	Kerala

Vengalil Krishnan (V.K.) Krishna Menon was an Indian nationalist and politician. Menon was born at Panniyankara in Calicut, Kerala, into the powerful Vengalil family of South India. He was the grandson of the Raja of Kartanad and the first son of a successful lawyer of the Calicut bar, Komath Krishna Kurup, one of Kerala's richest men at the time. Menon had his early education in Tellicherry and he took his B.A. degree from Presidency College, Chennai. While in college, he started taking an active interest in the national movement. While studying in the Law College of Madras, he became involved in Theosophy and actively associated with Annie Besant and the Home Rule Movement. He was a leading member of the 'Brothers of Service', founded by Annie Besant who spotted his gifts and helped him travel to England in 1924. In London, Menon pursued further education at the London School of Economics and University College London, and at the same time he became a passionate proponent of India's freedom. In England, he worked hard for Indian independence as a journalist and secretary (1929 - 1947) of the India League, and became associated with fellow Indian nationalist leader Jawaharlal Nehru. In 1934 he was admitted to the English bar, and after joining the Labour Party he was elected borough councillor of St. Pancras, London. St. Pancras later conferred on him the Freedom of the Borough, the only other person so honoured being Bernard Shaw. In 1932 he inspired a fact-finding delegation headed by Labour MP Ellen Wilkinson to visit India. Menon served as its Secretary and edited its report entitled 'conditions in India'. During the thirties he founded with Allen Lane the Penguin and Pelican paper back books. He worked as an editor for Bodley Head, Penguin and Pelican Books, and the Twentieth Century Library. After India was granted independence in 1947, Menon was appointed high commissioner to the United Kingdom, a post in which he remained until 1952. Subsequently, he led the Indian delegation to the United Nations (1952 - 1962), where he adopted a policy of non-alignment, loudly criticizing the United States and voicing support for the People's Republic of China.Even till date Krishna Menon's speech is the longest ever delivered in the Unites Nations Security Council(UNSC).
On 23 January 1957 he delivered an unpresidented 8 hour speech on defending india's stand on Kashmir. Krishna Menon became a member of the Rajya Sabha in 1953. On February 3, 1956, he joined the Union Cabinet as Minister without Portfolio. In 1957 he was elected to the Lok Sabha from Bombay, and in April of that year he was named minister of defence under Prime Minister Nehru. However, after India's staggering defeat in the Sino-Indian War of 1962, he was removed from office for the country's apparent lack of military preparedness. In 1967 he lost his parliamentary seat but was re-elected in 1969. He died on October 6, 1974 in New Delhi. During his tenure as the High commissioner to Britain, he was accused of being involved in a corruption scam involving the purchase of used military jeeps from Britain to supply to the Indian army during the war with Pakistan in 1948.

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C. Rajagopalachari

C. Rajagopalachari
Date of Birth	:	Dec 10, 1878
Date of Death	:	Dec 25, 1972
Place of Birth	:	India

Chakravarthi Rajagopalachari, known as or Rajaji or C.R., was an Indian lawyer, writer, statesman and a Hindu spiritualist. He was the second Governor-General of independent India. Later he became the Chief Minister of Madras State. At one time considered Mahatma Gandhi's heir, this brilliant lawyer from Salem, Tamil Nadu was regarded in pre-independence years as one of the top five leaders of the Congress along with Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. Rajaji was also related to Mahatma Gandhi - Rajmohan Gandhi is the grandson of both of them. Of the five, Rajaji, Nehru and Patel were christened the "head, heart and hands" of Gandhi, in whose shadows they remained till his death. Ironically, all three of them were to have a tempestuous relationship, bound together only by their common goal and Gandhi's charm. However, they respected each other immensely. Nehru wrote about Rajaji in his autobiography of how Rajaji's "brilliant intellect, selfless character, and penetrating powers of analysis have been a tremendous asset to our cause". Rajaji was perhaps the earliest Congress leader in the 1940s to admit to the likelihood of the Partition. He even prophesied then that Pakistan might break up in twenty-five years. Rajaji was known to be a fierce defender of his political ideals, and did not hesitate to contradict his closest aides and friends in public, whenever he sensed a threat to them. After serving time in British prisons for his work in the independence movement, he became a member of the Governor's Council in 1946. In 1948, after Indian independence was attained, he replaced Mountbatten to become the only Indian Governor-General of India, in which post he continued till the Republic was declared on January 26, 1950. The office was replaced by that of President, first held by Rajendra Prasad. Rajaji became a member of Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet, first without portfolio, then, after Patel's death, as Home Minister. He was chief minister of Madras from 1952 to 1954. On leaving government, he was among the first recipients of the Bharat Ratna, the Indian government's highest civilian award.

His writings

As a writer, he is one of the finest that India has to offer. Most erudite people have command of one language, but Rajaji was an expert in at least 3 (possibly 4). His works in his native Tamil are recognized as modern classics (published and re-printed several times). After his break with politics, he started on the massive task of translating the Hindu Scriptures Ramayana, Mahabharata from Sanskrit toTamil language and later into English. He received rave reviews from scholars and religious seers alike. He translated Upanishads and Bhaja Govindam into English. His novels and short stories, themselves would have won him public adulation. He also translated 'The Tirukkural' from Tamil to English. 'Tirukkural' is an ancient piece of the Tamil literature and is often referred to as 'the flower of Tamilnad'. His ability as a writer, is in a sense, unparalleled, not just in India alone. Some of his poetry was set to music and sung by Carnatic music's dominant personality M S Subbulakshmi at several occasions of importance, and once at the United Nations Kurai Onrum Illai (meaning - No regrets have I My lord, None) is a very famous song in the semi-Carnatic music genre written by Rajaji and the most popular version, (widely acknowledged as soul-stirring) has been rendered by M.S. Subbulakshmi. Rajaji also composed a hymn "Here under this Uniting Roof" which was sung in 1966 at the United Nations, again by M.S. Subbulakshmi. He was invited to the White House by President Kennedy; perhaps the only civilian, not in power, ever to be accorded formal state reception. The two discussed various matters and it is said that the great Indian statesman tried to impress the young President on the folly of an arms race - even one which the US could win. Today, such warnings haunt us. Rajaji's statesmanship and vision for all mankind is recognized to this day. The nonagenarian's public life, spanning nearly eighty years are perhaps best recognized by Mahatma Gandhi's rich tribute to him praising him as: "the keeper of my conscience".Rajaji died in December, 1972 after a short illness.

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Ambika Chakrobarty

Ambika Chakrobarty
Date of Birth	:	-
Date of Death	:	-
Place of Birth	:	India

Ambika Chakrabarty was an Bengali Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary. Ambika was a member of Chittagong Jugantar party. He took part in the Chittagong armoury raid.He was arrested by the police and was sentenced to death.However, the sentence was later changed to transportation for life to the Cellular jail in Andaman. He later became a member of West Bengal Rajya Sabha in 1952.

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Surendranath Banerjea

Surendranath Banerjea
Date of Birth	:	Nov 19, 1848
Date of Death	:	1925
Place of Birth	:	India

Surendranath Banerjea was the President of the Indian National Congress twice, in 1895 and 1902. He was largely responsible in canalizing the energy of the youth of Bengal to the service of the Motherland. He founded the Indian Association on July 26, 1876, which he wanted to be the center of an all-India political movement. He was the editor of a paper called "Bengalee" from 1878 and wrote with fervor and without fear on the subject of national interest with emphasis on freedom, unity and culture.Surendranath Banerjea was a member of the Calcutta Corporation (1876-99) and a member of the Indian Legislative Council.
He was an ardent advocate of social reform including widow remarriage and the raising of the age of marriage of girls. Born on November 19, 1848, Surendranath Banerjea had his early education in Calcutta. He appeared for the Indian Civil Service Examination in London and started his career in 1871 as an Assistant Magistrate. He had to leave the service on his dismissal on a flimsy charge. He went back to England and prepared himself for his future career as a national leader. He was a gifted orator and writer.Returning to India in June, 1875 Surendranath started his career as a Professor in English. Later, he started a college called Ripon College, now named after him. "He took full advantage of his teaching profession to make the Indian students inspired with a new patriotic spirit."

Surendranath Banerjea passed away in 1925.

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Aravinda Ackroyd Ghosh

Aravinda Ackroyd Ghosh
Date of Birth	:	August 15, 1872
Date of Death	:	Dec 5, 1950
Place of Birth	:	Calcutta

Aravinda Ackroyd Ghosh was born on August 15, 1872, in Calcutta. His father, Dr. Krishnadhan Ghosh, a civil medical officer in Bengal, added the middle name Ackroyd because a Miss Ackroyd, a visitor from England, was present at his birth. His mother, Swarnalata Devi, was the daughter of nationalist Rajnarayan Bose. Aravinda's father attained his M.D. from the University of Aberdeen in England. By the time Krishnadhan returned to India, he was so westernized that he vowed to bring his children up as Englishmen.
Aravinda and his brothers were admitted to a special school in Darjeeling, in 1877, which was meant only for English children. For two years the boys were taught by Irish nuns of the Loretto Convent School. In 1879, the children were taken to England. The two elder boys were admitted to a school, while Aravinda, who was just seven years old, was left in the care of Rev. W. H. Drewett and his wife in Manchester. The Drewetts were to tutor Aravinda. Aravinda learned English and Latin from the Reverend, and history, geography, arithmetic and French from Mrs. Drewett. Aravinda became fond of reading and made full use of the personal library of the Drewetts. After five years of comfortable living in Manchester, when the boys moved to London, their remittances from Dr. Ghosh started dwindling. Aravinda continued to excel in his studies despite difficulties. He carried away prizes for the classics--classical literature in particular. He won the Butterworth prize for literature, the Bedford prize for history and a scholarship at St. Paul's. While in the King's College at Cambridge, Aravinda was awarded a senior classical scholarship of 80 pounds per annum, in addition to a stipend as a candidate of the Indian Civil Service. Aravinda passed the Classical Tripos examination in the first class with distinction and passed in the open competition for the Indian Civil Service in 1890. He cleared the periodical examination and the medical examination but failed to appear for the horse-riding test which was compulsory for entering the Indian Civil Service. Aravinda returned to India on January 1893 aboard the S.S. Carthage. Just before Aravinda set foot in India, his father died of heart failure. He was only 21 and did not even possess proper qualifications. He accepted a post promised by Sayaji Rao Gaekwad of Baroda when he was in England, with a fixed salary of Rs. 200. He was first appointed in the survey settlement department, and later in the department of stamp and revenue. Often he served as the Gaekwad's personal secretary and prepared the Gaekwad's speeches and wrote the communiques between Baroda State and the Indian Government. In 1900, Aravinda accepted the post of professor of English at Baroda College and also taught French as a part-time professor. Aravinda married Mrinalini, daughter of Bhupal Chandra Basu, in 1901. Aravinda was 29 years old at the time of marriage while Mrinalini was only 14. The two had very little time to spend with each other since Aravinda lived in Baroda, and Mrinalini remained in Calcutta. Aravinda deeply loved his wife and was always regular in writing letters to her. His letters to her were published as a book called "Letters to Mrinalini." Mrinalini was initiated by Ma Sarada, saintly wife of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa of Dakshineshwara, seeking spiritual refuge. Mrinalini died of influenza in 1918 in Calcutta at the age of 31. In one of his letters to Mrinalini, Aravinda mentioned his three beliefs. First, he believed that whatever he had: talent, virtue, high education-all belonged to God. Second, he wished to come face to face with God. Third, in his own words, "Others look upon India , their country, as a mass of matter, a number of fields, plains, forests, mountains, and rivers and nothing more." He believed his nation to be his own mother. He adored her and worshipped her. He saw the entire nation at his door, seeking shelter and help in attaining freedom from foreign shackles. Initially, Aravinda's political activities were limited to Baroda, but they soon extended to Maharashtra, Gujarat and Bengal. He learned Marathi and Gujarati and taught himself Sanskrit. He studied Bengali under litterateur Dinendra Kumar Roy. Ghosh's goal was to capture the public through writing. He made an extensive study of Indian literature and papers on the Indian freedom struggle. Armed with fluency in Marathi, Gujarati and Bengali, he then transcribed his views in papers like the Indu Prakash, Bande Mataram, Dharma, and Karma Yogin. His writing became the ideal for the Indian youth. He called on the young to serve the nation as "karmayogins." He wanted the youth to devote all their energies toward freeing Mother India. He told the youth that, "if you will study, study for her sake; train yourself body and mind and soul for her service; work so that she may prosper; suffer so that she may rejoice." Ghosh formed secret revolutionary societies which enveloped Bengal. He asked members of these secret societies to take a solemn oath to "secure the freedom of Mother India at any cost." He stoked the fire of revolution by organizing a huge rally on November 9, 1905, in Calcutta. In the meantime, the Bande Mataram, a paper Ghosh edited, won the praise and admiration of all. The British, in an effort to curb the growing dissent, prosecuted the Bande Mataram and arrested Ghosh, who was charged with propagating sedition. The British resorted to caning anyone chanting "Bande Mataram". Aravinda was acquitted for lack of proof. Ghosh was again arrested and put in jail in the Lal Bazar police station on May 5, 1908 as an undertrial prisoner for what came to be known as the Alipore bomb conspiracy. An attempt on Lord Kingsford's life, a presidency magistrate in Calcutta known for his harsh and prejudiced verdicts against Indians, was made by revolutionaries. The attempt went awry when the bomb intended for Lord Kingsford landed in the carriage of two English ladies. Both the ladies died. Ghosh had often proposed the use of an open rebellion to attain freedom. His secret societies practiced bomb making along with the study of revolutionary literature and the Gita. Ghosh's brother, Barin, opened a center in Ghosh's Maniktala Gardens residence in Calcutta. Following the bombing, Ghosh's residence was raided on May 2, 1908. Barin was arrested along with his associates. Ghosh was arrested at his Grey Street residence.

What began was a grueling trial in which Ghosh was defended by the renowned Calcutta lawyer Chittaranjan Das. Ghosh exhibited his abhorrence for terrorist style militant resistance. He had propagated the idea of an open armed revolt. In his statement, Ghosh said, "The whole of my case before you is this. It is suggested that I preached the idea of freedom to my country which is against the law, I plead guilty to the charge. If it is an offence to preach the idea of freedom, I admit I have done it. I have never disputed it... I felt I was called upon to preach to my country to make them realize that India had a mission to perform in the comity of nations." Ghosh denied having engineered the attempt on Lord Kingsford's life, declaring the act as being against everything he stood for. Due to Chittaranjan Das's professional defense, Ghosh was acquitted.

On his release from jail, Ghosh came out a changed man. He seemed confident that India would attain her freedom. He now decided to devote his life to the liberation of the whole of the human race. On the advice of some friends, like Sister Nivedita, disciple of Swami Vivekananda, Ghosh left British India and moved to French Pondicherry on April 4, 1910 to avoid confrontation with the British.

Ghosh came to be known as Sri Aurobindo to the world. Aurobindo completed his "Savitri", which he began writing in 1899 and published in 1954. Besides the "Savitri", Sri Aurobindo compiled numerous treatise on the Vedas, Upanishads and the Gita. His "Life Divine", "The Superman", and "Ideal of Human Unity" are fine examples of work done in simple prose. In addition, his literary criticisms, poems, and plays made Sri Aurobindo a litterateur of the highest order. Sri Aurobindo was a master of Yoga which he believed would develop the "higher principles of life" which remain hidden within every individual. He felt humanity could attain perfection little by little through conscious preparation and effort. On Independence Day, Sri Aurobindo's message to the nation was, "August 15, 1947 is the birthday of free India. It marks for her the end of an old era, the beginning of a new age. But we can also make it by our life and acts as a free nation, an important date in a new age opening for the whole world, for the political, social, cultural and spiritual future of humanity." Sri Aurobindo died on December 5, 1950 in Pondicherry.

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Barindra Kumar Ghosh

Barindra Kumar Ghosh
Date of Birth	:	Jan 5, 1880
Date of Death	:	Apr 18, 1959
Place of Birth	:	Norwood

Barindra Kumar Ghosh was an Indian freedom fighter, revolutionary and journalist. He was one of the founder members of Jugantar, a revolutionary outfit in Bengal. Barindra Ghosh was born at Norwood near London on 5 January 1880. He was the younger brother of Aurobindo Ghosh. He did schooling in Deoghar and joined Patna College. He received military training in Baroda. During this time,(late 1800s - early 1900s) Barin was influenced by Aurobindo and drawn towards revolutionary movement. Barin came back to Kolkata and started organizing several revolutionary groups of Bengal with the help of Jatindranath Banerjee. Soon he started publishing Jugantar, a Bengali weekly and a revolutionary organization named Jugantar soon followed. Jugantar was formed from the inner circle of Anushilan Samiti and started its terrorist activities. Barin and Bagha Jatin were instrumental in the recruitment of many young revolutionaries from across Bengal. The revolutionaries formed of the Maniktala group in Maniktala, Kolkata - a secret place where they started manufacturing bombs and collected arms and ammunitions.
Following the attempted killing of Kingsford by 2 revolutionaries Khudiram and Prafulla, police intensified investigation that led to the arrest of Barin Ghosh, along with many of his comrades. The trial - known as Alipore bomb case - sentenced Barin Ghosh for death. However, the sentence was reduced to life imprisonment and Barin was deported to the Cellular Jail in Andaman. Barin was released in 1920 and returned to Kolkata and started a carrer in journalism. Soon he left business and formed an ashram in Kolkata. In 1923 he left for Pondicherry where his elder brother Aurobindo Ghosh had the famous ashram. He was influenced by Aurobindo towards spirituality and sadhana. Barin returned to Kolkata on 1929 and again took to journalism. He was associated with the newspaper The Statesman and later was the editor of the Bengali daily Basumati. He died on 18 April 1959.

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