State PCS - West Bengal (WBCS)

• 24 Jun 2025

Death Anniversary of Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee

Why in News?

The Vice-President of India, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar, paid homage to Dr. Syama Prasad Mukherjee on his death anniversary (24th June).

Key Points 

• About & Achievements: 
  • Syama Prasad Mukherjee was born into a Bengali Hindu family on 6th July 1901, in Calcutta.
  • He was an Indian politician, barrister, and academician who served as the Minister for Industry and Supply in Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's cabinet.
  • He started "Bang Wani", a Bengali journal, in 1922 and The Nationalist in 1940’s.
  • At the age of 33, Syama Prasad Mukherjee became the youngest vice-chancellor of Calcutta University in 1934 and held the office till 1938.
• Post Independence:
  • He supported the partition of Bengal in 1946 to prevent the inclusion of its Hindu-majority areas in a Muslim-dominated East Pakistan
    • He also opposed a failed bid for a united but independent Bengal made in 1947 by Sarat Bose, the brother of Subhas Chandra Bose, and Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, a Bengali Muslim politician.
  • He founded the Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJS), the predecessor of the modern-day Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and became its first President.
    • He was against Article 370 and such other restrictions barring entry into Jammu and Kashmir without prior permission. 
  • He was in favour of the complete integration of the State of J&K with the Indian Union. 
• Death:
  • He died in mysterious circumstances during detention in June 1953 while protesting against the special status given to Kashmir.