Syama Prasad Mukherjee

1901 - 1953

photo credits: Wikimedia Commons

country of citizenship: India, British Raj, Dominion of India

native language: Bangla

languages spoken, written or signed: Bangla, Hindi

educated at: Presidency University

occupation: politician, university teacher, barrister, freedom fighter

award received: honorary doctor of the University of Calcutta

position held: Member of the 1st Lok Sabha, Minister of Commerce and Industry, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calcutta, Member of the Constituent Assembly of India, Member of the Advisory Committee of the Constituent Assembly of India

Syama Prasad Mukherjee (6 July 1901 – 23 June 1953) was an Indian politician, barrister and academician, who served as India's first Minister for Industry and Supply (currently known as Minister of Commerce and Industries) in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet. After falling out with Nehru, protesting against the Liaquat–Nehru Pact, Mukherjee resigned from Nehru's cabinet. With the help of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, he founded the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the predecessor to the Bharatiya Janata Party, in 1951. He was also the president of Akhil Bharatiya Hindu Mahasabha from 1943 to 1946. He was arrested by the Jammu and Kashmir Police in 1953 when he tried to cross the border of the state. He was provisionally diagnosed of a heart attack and shifted to a hospital but died a day later. Since the Bharatiya Janata Party is the successor to the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, Mukherjee is also regarded as the founder of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by its members. Source: Wikipedia (en)