Jatindra Mohan Sengupta | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1885-02-22)22 February 1885 |
| Died | 23 July 1933(1933-07-23) (aged 48) Ranchi,Bihar and Orissa Province, British India |
| Alma mater | Downing College, Cambridge |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Spouse(s) | Edith Ellen Gray (later known asNellie Sengupta) |
Jatindra Mohan Sengupta (22 February 1885 – 23 July 1933)[1] was an Indian revolutionary against theBritish rule. He was arrested several times by the British police. In 1933, he died in a prison located inRanchi, India.
Sengupta studied atHare School,Calcutta and Presidency College, Calcutta.[2] After that he travelled to England, where he studied law atDowning College, Cambridge.[3] During his stay there, he met and married Edith Ellen Gray, later known asNellie Sengupta. He was elected president of theCambridge Majlis in 1908.[2] After returning to India, he started a legal practice. He also joined in Indian politics, becoming a member of theIndian National Congress and participating in theNon-Cooperation Movement. Eventually, he gave up his legal practice in favour of his political commitment.
Jatindra Mohan Sengupta was born on 22 February 1885 to a prominent land-owning (zamindar) family of Barama, in Chittagong district ofBritish India (now inChittagong,Bangladesh).[4] His father,Jatra Mohan Sengupta, was an advocate and a member of theBengal Legislative Council.[4]
Sengupta became a student of thePresidency College inCalcutta. After completing his university studies, he went to England in 1904 to acquire a bachelor's degree in law. While in England, he met his future wife, Edith Ellen Gray, who is now better known as Nellie Sengupta.[5]
After being awarded his degree in law, Sengupta wascalled to the Bar at theGray's Inn in England then returned with his wife to India,[3] where he began practicing law as a barrister. In 1911, he represented Chittagong in theBengal Provincial Conference atFaridpur.[5] This was the beginning of his political career. Later, he joined the Indian National Congress. He also organised the employees of theBurmah Oil Company to form a union.[6]
In 1921, Sengupta became the chairman of the Bengal Reception Committees of the Indian National Congress. That same year, during a strike at the Burmah Oil Company, he was also serving as the secretary of the employees' union.[6] He abandoned his legal practise due to his commitment to political work, particularly related to the Non-Cooperation Movement led byMohandas Karamchand Gandhi. In 1923, he was selected as a member of the Bengal Legislative Council.[7]
In 1925, after the death ofChitta Ranjan Das, Sengupta was elected president of the BengalSwaraj Party. He also became president of the Bengal Provincial Congress Committee. He was mayor of Calcutta from 10 April 1929 to 29 April 1930.[8] In March 1930, at a public meeting inRangoon, he was arrested on charges of provoking people against the Government and opposing theIndia–Burma separation.[7]
In 1931, Sengupta went to England to attend theRound Table Conference, supporting the position of the Indian National Congress.[7] He submitted pictures of police atrocities committed by the British to control the Chittagong rebellion, which shook the British Government.[9]
Sengupta was repeatedly arrested due to his political activities. In January 1932, he was arrested and detained inPoona and then inDarjeeling. Later, he was transferred to prison in Ranchi. There, his health started to decline and he died on 23 July 1933.[7]
Because of his popularity and contribution to the Indian freedom movement, Jatindra Mohan Sengupta is affectionately remembered by people of Bengal with the honorificDeshpriya orDeshapriya, meaning "beloved of the country".[5][10] In many criminal cases he defended the nationalist revolutionaries in the court and saved them from thegallows. He pled forSurya Sen,Ananta Singh,Ambika Chakrabarty in thePahartali trial and also saved a young revolutionary,Premananda Dutta, who had been accused in the case relating to the murder of Inspector Prafulla Chakraborty.[11] In 1985, a postal stamp was issued by the Indian Government in memory of Sengupta and his wife, Nellie.[5]
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