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Moti Lal Nehru, Motilal Nehru

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Abha, 10+2 (Med), Wisdom World School, Kurukshetra, Haryana, India - 136118

Nationality: British Indian

Known to be: Patriot, Nationalist, Freedom fighter, Lawyer

Born: May 6, 1861

Died: February 6, 1931

Father of Jawaharlal Nehru, he was himself a great patriot and freedom fighter. He not only opposed the cruel and oppressive British Rule himself but also guided the movement to a certain shape. He was also an eminent lawyer. He was one of the founder leaders of the Swarajist Party.

Pandit Moti Lal Nehru was born on May 6, 1861 in a reputed Kashmiri Brahmin family in Delhi. His father’s name was Gangadhar and Jeevarani was his mother. He cleared his matriculation from Kanpur. He decided to start his career as lawyer and soon cleared the law examination. He began his legal practice in Kanpur in 1883. He shifted to Allahabad to start his legal practice in the High Court. In a very short time period, he established himself as a succesful lawyer. In 1909, he reached the pinnacle of his legal career by gaining the approval to appear in the Privy Councile of Great Britain. He successfully contested the election to the Legislative Assembly of the United Province in 1910. Mahatma Gandhi’s emergence on the political scene of India and Jalinawala Bagh massacre propelled him to oppose the British rule tooth and nail. He was the member of the Congress inquiry committee on the Jalianwala tragedy besides Mahtma Gandhi and Chittaranjan Das as other members of the committed. Pandit Motilal Nehru shunned his legal pracitce on the call of Mahatma Gandhi during the Non-cooperation Movement. He also led the Home Rule Movement of Annie Besant at Allahabad. Motilal Nehru along with his son Jawaharlal Nehru was arrested during the Non-cooperation Movement in 1921 ans sentenced to six months imprisonment. But he intensified his efforts for the freedom of his country from the curse of the British rule. In 1923, he founded the Swaraj Party along with Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das with the object to enter the Legislative Assembly as elected members to oppose the British government. In 1927, he also opposed the Simon Commission as other nationalist leader did at that time. It was Motilal Nehru who was assigned to draw a Draft Constitution of Free India as the President of the Committee. The ‘Draft Constitution’was popularly known as the ‘Nehru Report’. The report proposed the Dominion Status for British India. But young Congress leaders like Subhash Chandra Bose and Jawaharlal Nehru opposed dominion status and demanded full freedom as the goal of the Indian National Congress.

Pandit Motilal Nehru again took active part in Gandhiji-led Civil Disobedience Movement. He arrested but was later released in view of his deteriorating health. Pandit Motilal Nehru passed away on February 6, 1931. Leaving his aim of India’s freedom unachieved, but very near.

He launched a paper named ‘Independent’ on February 5, 1919 to propagate his political views. He remained the President of the Indian National Congress twice. He presided over the Indian NationalCongress Amritsar session in 1919. He again became the President of Indian National Congress in its Calcutta session in 1928.

References

Bilal D., 2017, “PROMINENT HISTORICAL PERSONALITIES OF INDIA,” Pratiyogita Darpan English; September 2017: 102.

Kalpana Rajaram, 2015, “Personalities Associated with the National Movement,” Spectrum’s Handbook for General Studies Paper – I; Spectrum Books (P) Ltd., New Delhi; p. 36-40.

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