Khurshed Nariman
Encyclopedia
Khurshed Framji Nariman, also known as Veer Nariman, was one of the second generation of Parsi stalwarts in the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...

. He came into the public eye in 1928 as an independent and courageous politician for his sensational process against the British engineer involved in the Bombay 'Backbay Reclamation' scandal. He was cited for libel, but exposed the scandalous financial arrangements in this scheme.

Nariman was later elected president of the Bombay Provincial Congress Committee and then
mayor of Bombay. His Whither congress? 'Spiritual idealism' or 'political realism' some random thoughts on the Poona conference and after, published in 1933, was unpopular among members of the party.

In 1930 he was influenced by Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...

 and organised the civil disobedience movement in Bombay. However, following the elections of 1937 in the Bombay Presidency
Bombay Presidency
The Bombay Presidency was a province of British India. It was established in the 17th century as a trading post for the English East India Company, but later grew to encompass much of western and central India, as well as parts of post-partition Pakistan and the Arabian Peninsula.At its greatest...

, he was passed over in the selection of the chief minister in favour of B. G. Kher. He complained of a communalist bias to the party high command, but no investigation was taken up by Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru
Jawaharlal Nehru , often referred to with the epithet of Panditji, was an Indian statesman who became the first Prime Minister of independent India and became noted for his “neutralist” policies in foreign affairs. He was also one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the...

. Gandhi responded to a separate appeal, but could find no proof for Nariman's complaints.

He was expelled from the Congress party due to his vociferous but unsubstantiated charges. His attempts to reestablish himself in the freedom movement through the All India Forward Bloc
All India Forward Bloc
The All India Forward Bloc is a leftwing nationalist political party in India. It emerged as a faction within the Indian National Congress in 1939, led by Subhas Chandra Bose. The party re-established as an independent political party after the independence of India...

 (founded in 1939 by Subhash Chandra Bose
Subhash Chandra Bose
Subhas Chandra Bose known by name Netaji was an Indian revolutionary who led an Indian national political and military force against Britain and the Western powers during World War II. Bose was one of the most prominent leaders in the Indian independence movement and is a legendary figure in...

) failed.

Bombay
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

's Nariman Point
Nariman Point
Nariman Point is Mumbai's premier business district and country's first central business district. It was named after Khursheed Framji Nariman, a Parsi visionary. The area is situated on land reclaimed from the sea. It had the distinction of having the highest commercial real estate rental space...

 is named after him.

Sources

  • Portions of this text are from The Mumbai Pages (c) 2005, Sourendu Gupta, as released under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
    GNU Free Documentation License
    The GNU Free Documentation License is a copyleft license for free documentation, designed by the Free Software Foundation for the GNU Project. It is similar to the GNU General Public License, giving readers the rights to copy, redistribute, and modify a work and requires all copies and...

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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