Persons in News: Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee
Context:
Following a recent electoral victory in West Bengal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi invoked the legacy of Syama Prasad Mookerjee, the foundational figure of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) ideological predecessor.
Early Life and Academic Career:
Born on July 6, 1901, he was the son of Ashutosh Mookerjee, a prominent Calcutta High Court judge and former Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University.
He achieved remarkable early academic distinction by becoming the youngest Vice-Chancellor of Calcutta University at the age of just 33.
Political Journey and Ideology:
He was elected to the Bengal Legislative Council in 1929 and 1930.
He later served as the finance minister in the Progressive Coalition government of Fazlul Haque from 1941 to 1942, an alliance formed in opposition to the Muslim League.
Serving as the president of the Hindu Mahasabha from 1943 to 1946, he fiercely opposed the Muslim League's "United Bengal" plan.
Instead, he actively advocated for the partition of Bengal to ensure that the Hindu-majority West Bengal remained integrated with India.
As the Minister of Industry and Supply in Jawaharlal Nehru’s cabinet, he advocated for Hindu refugees fleeing East Pakistan.
In 1950, he resigned from the cabinet over the Nehru-Liaquat Pact, protesting that the agreement lacked strict sanctions against either country failing to protect its minorities.
Following his resignation, he founded the Bharatiya Jana Sangh in 1951.
In its electoral debut in 1952, the party won three Lok Sabha seats, two of which were from Bengal.
The Kashmir Agitation:
Mookerjee strongly opposed Article 370 and the 1952 Delhi Agreement, which allowed Jammu & Kashmir to maintain its own state flag and Prime Minister.
Praja Parishad Movement: The Praja Parishad Movement was a political agitation in Jammu and Kashmir during the early 1950s.
It was led by the All Jammu and Kashmir Praja Parishad, which demanded full integration of the state with India.
He joined the Praja Parishad agitation seeking the complete integration of J&K with India, popularising the famous slogan: "Ek desh mein do vidhan, do pradhan aur do nishan nahi chalenge" (One nation cannot have two constitutions, two Prime Ministers, and two flags).
In a symbolic rejection of the state's requirement for a special entry permit, he crossed into J&K without one in May 1953.
He was arrested and subsequently died in detention on June 23, 1953.