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{{Short description|Indian Parsi politician and lawyer}}
[[Image:C375.jpg|thumb|Sir Pherozeshah Mehta]]
{{EngvarB|date=September 2014}}
'''Sir Pherozeshah Mehta''' (August 4, 1845 - November 5, 1915) was an [[India]]n political leader, renowned [[barrister]], who became the president of [[Indian National Congress]] and the Municipal commissioner in 1873 and its Chairman in 1884-5 and again in 1905, was became the man behind the planning of the 'Bombay Municipal Act' in 1872.<ref>[http://theory.tifr.res.in/bombay/amenities/orgs/bmc.html History The Bombay Municipal Corporation (BMC)]</ref>
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2018}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Sir Pherozeshah Mehta
| honorific suffix = {{postnominals|country=GBR|KCIE}}
| image = Pherozeshah Mehta (portrait).jpg
| caption = Mehta in 1909.
| birth_name = Pherozeshah Merwanjee Mehta
| birth_date = {{birth date|1845|8|4|df=yes}}
| birth_place = [[Bombay]], [[British India]]
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1915|11|5|1845|8|4|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[Bombay]], [[British India]]
| occupation = Lawyer, politician
| nationality = [[British Indian passport|Indian]]
| citizenship = [[British Indian passport|Indian]]
| alma_mater = [[University of Mumbai|University of Bombay]]
| years_active =
| known_for = Co-founder and president of [[Indian National Congress]]
| party = [[Indian National Congress]]
| notable_works =
}}

'''Sir Pherozeshah Merwanjee Mehta''' (4 August 1845 – 5 November 1915) was an Indian politician and lawyer from [[Bombay]]. He was knighted by the [[British Raj|British Government]] in India for his service to the law. He became the [[Municipal Commissioner of Mumbai|Municipal commissioner]] of [[Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation|Bombay Municipality]] in 1873 and its president four times – 1884, 1885, 1905 and 1911.<ref>[http://www.vohuman.org/Article/Sir%20Phirozshah%grrPherozshah https://support.google.com/youtube/topic/6151248?hl=en&ref_topic=3230811,3256124, Biography]{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Mehta was one of the founding members and [[President (government title)|President]] of the [[Indian National Congress]] in 1890 held at Calcutta.


==Early life==
==Early life==
Pherozeshah Merwanjee Mehta was born on 4 August, 1845 in [[Bombay City]], [[Bombay Presidency]], [[British India]] into a [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]]-speaking [[Parsi]] [[Zoroastrian]] family. His father, a Bombay-based businessman who also spent plenty of time in [[Calcutta]], was not highly educated, but he did translate a Chemistry textbook into [[Gujarati language|Gujarati]] and wrote a Geography textbook.<ref>{{cite book|title=Our Leaders|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JImPF12aD1MC&pg=PA5|year=1989|publisher=Children's Book Trust|isbn=978-81-7011-929-6|page=5}}</ref> Graduating from the [[Elphinstone College]] in 1864, Pherozeshah obtained his [[Master of Arts]] degree with honors six months later, becoming the first such Parsi, from the [[University of Mumbai|University of Bombay]] (later re-established as [[University of Mumbai]]). [[Sir Alexander Grant, 10th Baronet|Sir Alexander Grant]], principal of the university, nominated him a [[Fellow]] of the university and tried to procure him a scholarship founded by [[Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy]] to study in Europe. However, Mehta did not avail himself of the scholarship.<ref name="mt1">{{cite news|title=An Uncrowned King|url=http://eresources.nlb.gov.sg/newspapers/Digitised/Article/maltribune19151208-1.2.27|access-date=15 May 2017|work=Malaya Tribune|date=8 December 1915}}</ref>
Born in Bombay, Pherozeshah Mehta was a [[Parsi]], and a [[Zoroastrian]] by religious belief.


Mehta went to England from India to study law at [[Lincoln's Inn]] in London. Here, he met and began association with fellow Indian barristers [[Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee]] and [[Badruddin Tyabji]].<ref name="mt1"/> In 1868, he became the first Parsi [[barrister]] called to the Bar from [[Lincoln's Inn]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Jinnah of Pakistan|last=Wolpert|first=Stanley|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2013|isbn=978-0-19-577389-7|location=Karachi, Pakistan|page=20}}</ref> The same year, he returned to India, was admitted to the bar, and soon established a practice for himself in a profession then dominated by British lawyers.
He was one of the first generation of Indians to receive Western-style college education, attending the [[University of Bombay]] and colleges in [[England]]. He was an outstanding student who excelled in all his subjects and chose to study law. Culturally he was highly westernized, and mixed freely with Englishmen and Britishers in India.


It was during a legal defence of [[Arthur Crawford]] that he pointed out the need for reforms in the Bombay municipal government. Later, he drafted the Bombay Municipal Act of 1872<ref>{{cite web|title=Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation|url=http://theory.tifr.res.in/bombay/amenities/orgs/bmc.html|website=Tata Institute of Fundamental Research|publisher=theory.tifr.res.in|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990224113205/http://theory.tifr.res.in/bombay/amenities/orgs/bmc.html|archive-date=24 February 1999|url-status=dead}}</ref> and is thus considered the 'father of [[Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation|Bombay Municipality]]'.<ref>{{cite web|title=Political Figures|url=http://www.lokpriya.com/personalities/political/past/pheroze.html|publisher=lokpriya.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010617182006/http://www.lokpriya.com/personalities/political/past/pheroze.html|archive-date=17 June 2001}}</ref> Eventually, Mehta left his law practice to enter politics.
Mehta became a barrister, and enjoyed great success working at the [[Bombay High Court]] in the western port city of [[Bombay]], capital of the Bombay Presidency (now [[Mumbai]], in the state of [[Maharashtra]]). He soon became wealthy, and an icon to young Indians seeking a good future.

Mehta drove many young Indians to the study of law, who later empowered the nationalist movement. One of them was a young Gujarati lawyer [[Mohandas Gandhi]], who sought advice on practising law in Bombay.


==Political and social activities==
==Political and social activities==
[[File:Statue of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta.jpg|thumb|Statue of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta in front of BMC's HQ, next to [[Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus|CST]].]]
A celebrity in the city of Bombay, Mehta lived in a posh house near [[Churchgate]]. He encouraged Indians to obtain western education and embrace its culture to uplift India. He contributed to many social causes for education, sanitation and health care in the city and around India. He also did a lot of social work, with whatever time he had free on hand.
When the [[Bombay Presidency Association]] was established in 1885, Mehta became its president, and remained so for the rest of his years.<ref>{{cite web|title=Great Minds|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2000/20000130/spectrum/main2.htm#2|work=The Tribune|access-date=15 May 2017|date=30 January 2000}}</ref> He encouraged Indians to obtain western education and embrace its culture to uplift India. He contributed to many social causes for education, sanitation and health care in the city and around India.


Mehta was one of the founders of the [[Indian National Congress]].<ref>[http://rajyasabha.nic.in/photo/phcommittee/p5.html Rajya Sabha] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214180050/http://rajyasabha.nic.in/photo/phcommittee/p5.html |date=14 February 2008 }}</ref> He was the chairman of the Reception Committee in its fifth session in Bombay in 1889.<ref name="mt1"/> He presided over the next session in Calcutta.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art25/topleft.htm |title=Presidents of Indian National Congress |access-date=23 April 2014 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026232349/http://www.geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art25/topleft.htm |archive-date=26 October 2009 }}</ref>
Mehta joined the [[Indian National Congress]] and He became the president of the Indian National Congress in 1890, and became a member of the Bombay Legislative Council in 1893, and 1910 a member of the [[Imperial Legislative Council]]. <ref>[http://theory.tifr.res.in/bombay/personspherozeshah-mehta.html Biography]</ref>


Mehta was nominated to the [[Bombay Legislative Council]] in 1887<ref>[http://theory.tifr.res.in/bombay/personspherozeshah-mehta.html Biography]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> and in 1893 a member of the [[Imperial Legislative Council]].<ref>[http://www.vohuman.org/Article/Sir%20Phirozshah%20Mehta.htm Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – A biography]. Vohuman.org. Retrieved on 29 November 2018.</ref> In 1894, he was appointed a Companion of the [[Order of the Indian Empire]] (CIE)<ref>{{cite web|title=To be Companions|url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/26472/page/2|work=The London Gazette|publisher=thegazette.co.uk|page=2|date=2 June 1894}}</ref> and was appointed a Knight Commander (KCIE) in 1904.<ref>[http://www.london-gazette.co.uk/issues/27688/supplements/4010 The London Gazette]. 21 June 1904. Supplement: 27688. p. 4010</ref>
In 1910, he started [[Bombay Chronicle]], an English-language weekly newspaper, which became an important Nationalist voice of its time, and an important chronicler of the political upheavals of a volatile pre-independent India. <ref>[http://www.aicc.org.in/role_of_press_in_india%E2%80%99s_struggle_for_freedom.php ROLE OF PRESS IN INDIA'S STRUGGLE FOR FREEDOM]</ref>


In 1910, he started ''[[The Bombay Chronicle]]'', an English-language weekly newspaper, which became an important nationalist voice of its time, and an important chronicler of the political upheavals of a volatile pre-independent India.<ref>{{cite web|title=Role of Press in India's Struggle For Freedom|url=http://www.aicc.org.in/role_of_press_in_india?s_struggle_for_freedom.php|work=Indian National Congress|publisher=aicc.org.in|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061105084115/http://www.aicc.org.in/role_of_press_in_india%E2%80%99s_struggle_for_freedom.php|archive-date=5 November 2006}}</ref> He served as a member of Bombay's Municipal Corporation for six years.<ref name=":0" />
He saw through the British tactics of binding Parsi loyalty to the crown, by repeatedly making Parsis feel superior by showering them with decorations and praise, as by 1946 as many as 63 Paris had been knighted.


Mehta died on 5 November 1915, in Bombay.
"<blockquote>In speaking of myself as a native of this country, I am not unaware that,


==Legacy==
incredible as it may seem, Parsis have been both called and invited and
[[File:Pherozeshah Mehta 1996 stamp of India.jpg|thumb|150px|Pherozeshah Mehta featured on Indian Postal Stamp]]
A portrait of Pherozeshah Mehta at the Indian Parliament House, shows his importance in the making of the nation.<ref>[http://rajyasabha.nic.in/photo/phcommittee/p5.html Portraits-Rajya Sabha] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080214180050/http://rajyasabha.nic.in/photo/phcommittee/p5.html |date=14 February 2008 }}</ref> He was known as 'The Lion of Bombay' and 'Uncrowned King of Bombay'.<ref name="mt1"/> In Mumbai, even today Mehta is much revered; there are roads, halls and law colleges named after him. He is respected as an important inspiration for young Indians of the era, his leadership of India's bar and legal profession, and for laying the foundations of Indian involvement in political activities and inspiring Indians to fight for more self-government.


allured to call themselves, foreigners."</blockquote>[http://www.the-south-asian.com/April2001/Parsis-pioneers%20of%20Modern%20India%201.htm Parsi Pioneers of modern India]
In Mehta's lifetime, few Indians had discussed or embraced the idea of full political independence from Britain. As one of the few people who espoused involvement of the activity of Indians in politics, he was nicknamed "Ferocious Mehta."<ref name="Parsi Pioneers of modern India">[http://www.the-south-asian.com/April2001/Parsis-pioneers%20of%20Modern%20India%201.htm Parsi Pioneers of modern India]. The-south-asian.com. Retrieved on 29 November 2018.</ref>


==See also==
Mehta's fellow Congressmen at the time were [[Dadabhai Naoroji]], [[Gopal Krishna Gokhale]], [[Muhammad Ali Jinnah]] and [[Annie Besant]].
* [[Indian Independence Movement]]
* [[Indian National Congress]]


==Bibliography==
He had been knighted for his services to law and political support of the Empire. Pherozeshah Mehta died in 1915.
* Sir Pherozeshah Mehta, a Political Biography – Homi Mody. New York, Asia Pub. House, 1963.

* Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – Hormasji Peroshaw Mody. New Delhi, Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (1967, 1963)
==Legacy==
* Life and times of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – V S Srinivasa Sastri, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1975.
Even today Sir Pherozeshah Mehta is respected in Mumbai. There are roads, halls and law colleges named after him. Even though he was a liberal and pro-British, Mehta is respected as an important inspiration for young Indians of the era, his leadership of India's bar and legal profession, and for laying the foundations of Indian involvement in political activities and inspiring Indians to fight for more self-government. In Mehta's lifetime, few Indians had discussed or embraced the idea of full political independence from the Empire.
* Pherozeshah Mehta : Socio-political ideology – S R Bakshi. New Delhi, Anmol Publications, 1991.
* Sir Pherozeshah Mehta memorial volume – Godrej N Dotivala. Bombay : Mayor's Fund Committee, 1990.
* Pherozeshah Mehta : maker of modern India -Nawaz B Mody. Allied Publishers, 1997.
* Sir Pherozeshah Mehta, a sketch of his life and career. (Spanish) Madras, G.A. Natesan 1916.
* Some unpublished & later speeches & writings of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – POO. Jeejeebhoy. Commercial Press, 1918.
* Ten Indian Biographies, in Hindi – Surendra Sharma; Avadha Upadhyaya; Lakshminidhi Chaturvedi; P S Verma; P N Ojha; Janakosharan Verma; Ganesha Datta Gaur. Prayaga, Hindi Press, 1930.


== References ==
== References ==
{{reflist}}
<references/>
{{Citations missing|date=December 2006}}


==See also==
==External links==
{{Commons category|Pherozeshah Mehta}}
* [[Indian Independence Movement]], [[Indian National Congress]]
{{EB1922 Poster|Mehta, Sir Pherozeshah Merwanji|Pherozeshah Mehta}}
* [http://www.indianpost.com/viewstamp.php/Color/Blue%20Gray/SIR%20FEROZ%20SHAH%20MEHTA Postage Stamp of Pherozeshah Mehta, 1996]
* [http://www.go4prep.com/pherozeshah-mehta-biography-history-in-hindi/ Pherozeshah Mehta Biography in Hindi]
* [http://www.gyanipandit.com/feroz-shah-mehta-biography-in-hindi/ Pherozeshah Mehta in Hindi]
{{Indian National Congress Presidents}}

{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Indian activists|Mehta, Pherozeshah]]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehta, Pherozeshah}}
[[Category:Parsis|Mehta, Pherozeshah]]
[[Category:Presidents of the Indian National Congress|Mehta, Pherozeshah]]
[[Category:University of Mumbai alumni|Mehta, Pherozeshah]]
[[Category:1845 births]]
[[Category:1845 births]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:1915 deaths]]
[[Category:Parsi people]]
[[Category:Parsi people from Mumbai]]
[[Category:Politicians from Mumbai]]
[[Category:Presidents of the Indian National Congress]]
[[Category:Indian independence activists from Maharashtra]]
[[Category:University of Mumbai alumni]]
[[Category:Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire]]
[[Category:Indian knights]]
[[Category:Members of the Imperial Legislative Council of India]]
[[Category:Elphinstone College alumni]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Mumbai]]
[[Category:Indian newspaper founders]]
[[Category:Indian National Congress politicians from Maharashtra]]
[[Category:Members of the Bombay Legislative Council]]
[[Category:Scholars from Mumbai]]
[[Category:Scholars from British India]]
[[Category:Lawyers in British India]]
[[Category:Politicians from British India]]
[[Category:People from Bombay Presidency]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian politicians]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian politicians]]

Latest revision as of 17:00, 6 April 2024

Sir Pherozeshah Mehta
Mehta in 1909.
Born
Pherozeshah Merwanjee Mehta

(1845-08-04)4 August 1845
Died5 November 1915(1915-11-05) (aged 70)
NationalityIndian
CitizenshipIndian
Alma materUniversity of Bombay
Occupation(s)Lawyer, politician
Known forCo-founder and president of Indian National Congress
Political partyIndian National Congress

Sir Pherozeshah Merwanjee Mehta (4 August 1845 – 5 November 1915) was an Indian politician and lawyer from Bombay. He was knighted by the British Government in India for his service to the law. He became the Municipal commissioner of Bombay Municipality in 1873 and its president four times – 1884, 1885, 1905 and 1911.[1] Mehta was one of the founding members and President of the Indian National Congress in 1890 held at Calcutta.

Early life[edit]

Pherozeshah Merwanjee Mehta was born on 4 August, 1845 in Bombay City, Bombay Presidency, British India into a Gujarati-speaking Parsi Zoroastrian family. His father, a Bombay-based businessman who also spent plenty of time in Calcutta, was not highly educated, but he did translate a Chemistry textbook into Gujarati and wrote a Geography textbook.[2] Graduating from the Elphinstone College in 1864, Pherozeshah obtained his Master of Arts degree with honors six months later, becoming the first such Parsi, from the University of Bombay (later re-established as University of Mumbai). Sir Alexander Grant, principal of the university, nominated him a Fellow of the university and tried to procure him a scholarship founded by Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy to study in Europe. However, Mehta did not avail himself of the scholarship.[3]

Mehta went to England from India to study law at Lincoln's Inn in London. Here, he met and began association with fellow Indian barristers Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee and Badruddin Tyabji.[3] In 1868, he became the first Parsi barrister called to the Bar from Lincoln's Inn.[4] The same year, he returned to India, was admitted to the bar, and soon established a practice for himself in a profession then dominated by British lawyers.

It was during a legal defence of Arthur Crawford that he pointed out the need for reforms in the Bombay municipal government. Later, he drafted the Bombay Municipal Act of 1872[5] and is thus considered the 'father of Bombay Municipality'.[6] Eventually, Mehta left his law practice to enter politics.

Political and social activities[edit]

Statue of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta in front of BMC's HQ, next to CST.

When the Bombay Presidency Association was established in 1885, Mehta became its president, and remained so for the rest of his years.[7] He encouraged Indians to obtain western education and embrace its culture to uplift India. He contributed to many social causes for education, sanitation and health care in the city and around India.

Mehta was one of the founders of the Indian National Congress.[8] He was the chairman of the Reception Committee in its fifth session in Bombay in 1889.[3] He presided over the next session in Calcutta.[9]

Mehta was nominated to the Bombay Legislative Council in 1887[10] and in 1893 a member of the Imperial Legislative Council.[11] In 1894, he was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire (CIE)[12] and was appointed a Knight Commander (KCIE) in 1904.[13]

In 1910, he started The Bombay Chronicle, an English-language weekly newspaper, which became an important nationalist voice of its time, and an important chronicler of the political upheavals of a volatile pre-independent India.[14] He served as a member of Bombay's Municipal Corporation for six years.[4]

Mehta died on 5 November 1915, in Bombay.

Legacy[edit]

Pherozeshah Mehta featured on Indian Postal Stamp

A portrait of Pherozeshah Mehta at the Indian Parliament House, shows his importance in the making of the nation.[15] He was known as 'The Lion of Bombay' and 'Uncrowned King of Bombay'.[3] In Mumbai, even today Mehta is much revered; there are roads, halls and law colleges named after him. He is respected as an important inspiration for young Indians of the era, his leadership of India's bar and legal profession, and for laying the foundations of Indian involvement in political activities and inspiring Indians to fight for more self-government.

In Mehta's lifetime, few Indians had discussed or embraced the idea of full political independence from Britain. As one of the few people who espoused involvement of the activity of Indians in politics, he was nicknamed "Ferocious Mehta."[16]

See also[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

  • Sir Pherozeshah Mehta, a Political Biography – Homi Mody. New York, Asia Pub. House, 1963.
  • Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – Hormasji Peroshaw Mody. New Delhi, Publications Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (1967, 1963)
  • Life and times of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – V S Srinivasa Sastri, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1975.
  • Pherozeshah Mehta : Socio-political ideology – S R Bakshi. New Delhi, Anmol Publications, 1991.
  • Sir Pherozeshah Mehta memorial volume – Godrej N Dotivala. Bombay : Mayor's Fund Committee, 1990.
  • Pherozeshah Mehta : maker of modern India -Nawaz B Mody. Allied Publishers, 1997.
  • Sir Pherozeshah Mehta, a sketch of his life and career. (Spanish) Madras, G.A. Natesan 1916.
  • Some unpublished & later speeches & writings of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – POO. Jeejeebhoy. Commercial Press, 1918.
  • Ten Indian Biographies, in Hindi – Surendra Sharma; Avadha Upadhyaya; Lakshminidhi Chaturvedi; P S Verma; P N Ojha; Janakosharan Verma; Ganesha Datta Gaur. Prayaga, Hindi Press, 1930.

References[edit]

  1. ^ https://support.google.com/youtube/topic/6151248?hl=en&ref_topic=3230811,3256124, Biography[permanent dead link]
  2. ^ Our Leaders. Children's Book Trust. 1989. p. 5. ISBN 978-81-7011-929-6.
  3. ^ a b c d "An Uncrowned King". Malaya Tribune. 8 December 1915. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  4. ^ a b Wolpert, Stanley (2013). Jinnah of Pakistan. Karachi, Pakistan: Oxford University Press. p. 20. ISBN 978-0-19-577389-7.
  5. ^ "Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation". Tata Institute of Fundamental Research. theory.tifr.res.in. Archived from the original on 24 February 1999.
  6. ^ "Political Figures". lokpriya.com. Archived from the original on 17 June 2001.
  7. ^ "Great Minds". The Tribune. 30 January 2000. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  8. ^ Rajya Sabha Archived 14 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  9. ^ "Presidents of Indian National Congress". Archived from the original on 26 October 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  10. ^ Biography[permanent dead link]
  11. ^ Sir Pherozeshah Mehta – A biography. Vohuman.org. Retrieved on 29 November 2018.
  12. ^ "To be Companions". The London Gazette. thegazette.co.uk. 2 June 1894. p. 2.
  13. ^ The London Gazette. 21 June 1904. Supplement: 27688. p. 4010
  14. ^ "Role of Press in India's Struggle For Freedom". Indian National Congress. aicc.org.in. Archived from the original on 5 November 2006.
  15. ^ Portraits-Rajya Sabha Archived 14 February 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Parsi Pioneers of modern India. The-south-asian.com. Retrieved on 29 November 2018.

External links[edit]