Pandit Amir Chand Bombwal
Encyclopedia
Pandit Amir Chand Bombwal (Hindko
: पंडित अमीर चन्द बोमबवाल (Devanagari
), (Shahmukhi)) was a journalist, a freedom fighter in the Indian independence movement
, a Khudai Khidmatgar
and a political leader of the Indian National Congress Party from Peshawar
, North-West Frontier Province
(NWFP) of British India. He was the founder, editor and publisher of a weekly newspaper called The Frontier Mail and a close associate of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
. He lived from 8 August 1893 - 10 February 1972.
He was born to a Hindu
Mohyal
Brahmin
family of Peshawar and was the son of Mehr Chand Bombwal. An active member of the Indian National Congress
party, he was jailed for participation in the first Non-Cooperation Movement
in 1921-23.
Upon release from jail, he worked to rehabilitate the refugees and victims of the 1924 Kohat riots
. Mahatama Gandhi commended him for the service he provided to the riot victims.
After the Partition of India
, he was arrested without charges, along with Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
and Dr. Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan
(known as Dr. Khan Sahib) by the founder of Pakistan
, Mohammed Ali Jinnah who suspected them of undermining the accession of NWFP to Pakistan. They were jailed in Peshawar
Central Jail and there was little hope for their release. Upon the death of Jinnah, Liaquat Ali Khan
, who was on friendly terms with them, assumed the reins of power in Pakistan. Liaquat Ali Khan facilitated their release from jail, and transferred Bombwal to India in 1948, where he arrived on a flight carrying the ceasefire delegation of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
from Pakistan.
After Partition, he settled down in Dehradun
, India and continued to publish The Frontier Mail from there. He gifted the Indian people a floor-to-ceiling height oil painting of Vithalbhai Patel
that now hangs on right side of the dais in Central Hall of the Indian Parliament.
In 1963, he became related to Bakshi Badri Nath Chhibber
, another prominent Mohyal
, through the marriage of his granddaughter, Dr. Hriday Jyoti Datta to the latter's nephew, Dr. Shyam Sundar Chibber.
He died in Delhi
of natural causes. Upon his death, fifteen trunks containing his documents were transferred to the National Archives of India
.
Hindko language
Hindko , also Hindku, or Hinko, is the sixth main regional language of Pakistan. It forms a subgroup of Indo-Aryan languages spoken by Hindkowans in Pakistan and northern India, some Pashtun tribes in Pakistan, as well as by the Hindki people of Afghanistan...
: पंडित अमीर चन्द बोमबवाल (Devanagari
Devanagari
Devanagari |deva]]" and "nāgarī" ), also called Nagari , is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal...
), (Shahmukhi)) was a journalist, a freedom fighter in the Indian independence movement
Indian independence movement
The term Indian independence movement encompasses a wide area of political organisations, philosophies, and movements which had the common aim of ending first British East India Company rule, and then British imperial authority, in parts of South Asia...
, a Khudai Khidmatgar
Khudai Khidmatgar
Khudai Khidmatgar literally translates as the servants of God, represented a non-violent freedom struggle against the British Empire by the Pashtuns of the North-West Frontier Province....
and a political leader of the Indian National Congress Party from Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
, North-West Frontier Province
North-West Frontier Province
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa , formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province and various other names, is one of the four provinces of Pakistan, located in the north-west of the country...
(NWFP) of British India. He was the founder, editor and publisher of a weekly newspaper called The Frontier Mail and a close associate of Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan was an Afghan, Pashtun political and spiritual leader known for his non-violent opposition to British Rule in India...
. He lived from 8 August 1893 - 10 February 1972.
He was born to a Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
Mohyal
Mohyal
Mohyal is the name of an endogamous ethnic group that originates from the Gandhara region and consists of seven Brahmin lineages of that area that left the usual priestly occupation of Brahmins long ago to serve as soldiers and in government services.The...
Brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
family of Peshawar and was the son of Mehr Chand Bombwal. An active member of 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...
party, he was jailed for participation in the first Non-Cooperation Movement
Non-cooperation movement
The non-cooperation movement was a significant phase of the Indian struggle for freedom from British rule which lasted for years. This movement, which lasted from September 1920 to February 1922 and was led by Mohandas Gandhi, and supported by the Indian National Congress. It aimed to resist...
in 1921-23.
Upon release from jail, he worked to rehabilitate the refugees and victims of the 1924 Kohat riots
1924 Kohat riots
The 1924 Kohat riots were major anti-Hindu riots that occurred in Kohat in North-West Frontier Province, British India in 1924. In three days of riots, over 155 Hindus and Sikhs were killed. The entire population of Hindus and Sikhs living there had to flee for their lives...
. Mahatama Gandhi commended him for the service he provided to the riot victims.
After the Partition of India
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
, he was arrested without charges, along with Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan
Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan was an Afghan, Pashtun political and spiritual leader known for his non-violent opposition to British Rule in India...
and Dr. Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan
Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan
Khan Abdul Jabbar Khan popularly known as Dr. Khan Sahib was a pioneer in the Indian Independence Movement and a Pakistan politician.-Early life:...
(known as Dr. Khan Sahib) by the founder of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, Mohammed Ali Jinnah who suspected them of undermining the accession of NWFP to Pakistan. They were jailed in Peshawar
Peshawar
Peshawar is the capital of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and the administrative center and central economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan....
Central Jail and there was little hope for their release. Upon the death of Jinnah, Liaquat Ali Khan
Liaquat Ali Khan
For other people with the same or similar name, see Liaqat Ali Nawabzada Liaquat Ali Khan was a Pakistani statesman who became the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, Defence minister and Commonwealth, Kashmir Affairs...
, who was on friendly terms with them, assumed the reins of power in Pakistan. Liaquat Ali Khan facilitated their release from jail, and transferred Bombwal to India in 1948, where he arrived on a flight carrying the ceasefire delegation of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
The India-Pakistan War of 1947-48, sometimes known as the First Kashmir War, was fought between India and Pakistan over the princely state of Kashmir and Jammu from 1947 to 1948. It was the first of four wars fought between the two newly independent nations...
from Pakistan.
After Partition, he settled down in Dehradun
Dehradun
- Geography :The Dehradun district has various types of physical geography from Himalayan mountains to Plains. Raiwala is the lowest point at 315 meters above sea level, and the highest points are within the Tiuni hills, rising to 3700 m above sea level...
, India and continued to publish The Frontier Mail from there. He gifted the Indian people a floor-to-ceiling height oil painting of Vithalbhai Patel
Vithalbhai Patel
Vithalbhai Patel was an Indian legislator and political leader, and co-founder of the Swaraj Party.-Early life:Born in Nadiad, in the Indian state of Gujarat, Vithalbhai Jhaverbhai Patel was the third of five Patel brothers, four years elder to Vallabhbhai Patel, raised in the village of Karamsad...
that now hangs on right side of the dais in Central Hall of the Indian Parliament.
In 1963, he became related to Bakshi Badri Nath Chhibber
Bakshi Badri Nath Chhibber
Rai Bahadur Bakshi Badri Nath Chhibber , was a highly decorated police officer in British and independent India. He was a Muhiyal belonging to the Bhera branch of the Chhibber clan.-Career in Police:...
, another prominent Mohyal
Mohyal
Mohyal is the name of an endogamous ethnic group that originates from the Gandhara region and consists of seven Brahmin lineages of that area that left the usual priestly occupation of Brahmins long ago to serve as soldiers and in government services.The...
, through the marriage of his granddaughter, Dr. Hriday Jyoti Datta to the latter's nephew, Dr. Shyam Sundar Chibber.
He died in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
of natural causes. Upon his death, fifteen trunks containing his documents were transferred to the National Archives of India
National Archives of India
The National Archives of India is a repository of the non-current records of the Government of India and is holding them in trust for the use of administrators and scholars. Originally established as the 'Imperial Record Department' in 1891, in Calcutta, the then capital of British India...
.