Lala Lajpat Rai was a popular Indian independence activist, author, politician, and freedom struggler and even played a pivotal role in the process of India gaining full independence.
In 1894, he got involved in the establishment of the Punjab National Bank and Lakshmi Insurance Company. He established the Hindu Orphan Relief Movement to prevent missionary custody by preventing them from doing so by providing legal help for those parents who could not care for their children.
He also organized fiery speeches as well as passionate messages about India's independence to help motivate others to participate in this movement to provide freedom from foreign rule. On November 17th, 1928, he was beaten to death by a British group while protesting against British rule.
This Lala Lajpat Rai biography will review the exemplary life and career of Lala Lajpat Rai, uncover the many important contributions he made towards Indian independence, provide various interesting and relevant Lala Lajpat Rai details, and explain how he died.
About His Early Life and Career
Lala Lajpat Rai was born on January 28th, 1865. His birthplace was Jagraon, Ludhiana district, Punjab.
Lala Lajpat Rai's father was Munshi Radha Krishan Agarwal, an Urdu and Persian government School teacher. His mother's name was Gulab Devi Agarwal.
His father moved to Rewari, in the late 1870s. In Rewari, he received his early education at the Government Higher Secondary School in the Punjab province, where his father was employed as a teacher of Urdu. Rai's liberal views and belief in Hinduism were influenced by his father and mother during his youth. This shaped Rai's opinion of how to apply reform to politics and journalism, which he has been very adept at doing.
Lala Lajpat Rai took up law at Government College in Lahore in 1880 where he met future freedom fighters such as Lala Hans Raj and Pandit Guru Dutt. When he attended university in Pakistan, he studied the Hindu reformist movement led by Swami Dayanand Saraswati. He was the founder and editor of the Arya Gazette in Lahore. He became a strong believer in the belief that Hinduism, rather than nationality, is a pivotal point on which an Indian lifestyle must be based when studying law.
The National Executive Council of the Naujawan Bharat Sabha suspected that his association with Hindu Mahasabha leaders would result in problems because they are a non-secular group, and they do not follow the Indian National Congress's system.
The focus on Hindu rituals in the subcontinent would eventually lead him to further nonviolent protests in support of Indian independence demonstrations. His father moved to Rohtak in 1884 and he followed soon after finishing his studies in Lahore.
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In 1886, he moved to Hisar, where his father had been relocated, and began practicing law. He became one of the first members of the Hisar Bar Council.
His express desire to serve his country was evident as early as childhood, when he vowed to liberate it from foreign rule, which he accomplished in 1886 when the Indian National Congress established a branch in Hisar, India.
Along with his colleagues Babu Churamani, Lala Chhabil Das, and Seth Gauri Shankar, he was one of the four delegates from Hisar to attend the annual session of the Congress in Allahabad in 1888 and 1889.
In 1892, Justice Dyer left his job as a judge living in London to move to Lahore, where he sought permission from the British government.
In the run-up to independence, Gandhi also pursued journalism. He was a frequent contributor to many newspapers, including The Tribune. There, he helped shape India's political policy and advocate for it. He supported Mahatma Hansraj one of the founding fathers of the Dayananda Anglo-Vedic School in Lahore.
Lala Lajpat Rai’s Family
Let us now go through a few more Lala Lajpat Rai information like his family details. Lala Lajpat Rai was married to Radha Devi Aggarwal. He had three children, two sons, and one daughter.
Pyarelal Aggrawal and Amrit Rai Aggrawal were his sons. His daughter’s name was Parvati Aggrawal.
Lala Lajpat Rai as Indian Independence Activist
Lala Lajpat Rai left his law practice in 1914 to devote himself to the independence of India, traveling afterward to London and then the United States in 1917.
Lala Lajpat Rai joined the Indian National Congress in order to partake in political unrest in Punjab, but there was insufficient evidence to charge him with subversion.
Lajpat Rai's campaign team tried but failed to elect him as president of the Indian National Congress in Surat in December 1907.
Lala Lajpat Rai is known for waging his battle against the caste system, women's status, and untouchability.
The Vedas were essential to the Hindu religion, and should not be a requirement for low castes. The lower caste should be allowed to read and recite mantras, so they are able to better understand their views on Hinduism.The Vedas should be available for all to read and learn from.
He created the Indian Home Rule League of America and a monthly journal Young India and Hindustan Information Services Association in October 1917.
From 1917 to 1920, the US remained in his hands.
After arriving in the United States in 1917, Lala Lajpat Rai visited Sikh communities on the West Coast of the US, as well as Tuskegee University in Alabama and workers in the Philippines.
The United States petitioned the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee of the United States Congress, painting a vivid image of the British Raj's mismanagement in India, the Indian people's desire for democracy, and many other issues, on behalf of India.
Lajpat Rai stayed in the United States during World War I, but he returned to India in 1919 and headed the Congress party when their special session was to launch the non-cooperation movement.
He was incarcerated from 1921 to 1923 and after his release, he went on to become the president of the legislature.
The Commission was founded in 1928 by the British government to provide a forum and report on Indian politics.
India's political parties boycotted the Commission because it did not have a single Indian in its membership, and was met with nationwide protests.
Lajpat Rai led a march in protest of the Commission's visit to Lahore on October 30, 1928; protestors raised black flags and chanted "Simon Go Back."
Superintendent James A. Scott directed the police to use lathi charges against the demonstrators and assaulted Rai personally.
How Lala Lajpat Rai Died?
Lala Lajpat Rai was severely wounded in the lathi charge by British soldiers.
Lala Lajpat Rai had been injured in Bhagat Singh's bomb attack. He continued with his final speech despite being severely wounded, which consisted of him declaring that the blows struck at him today will be the last nails in the coffin of British rule in India.
Lala Lajpat Rai died on November 17, 1928, after failing to recover from his injuries.
Although the British government denied any involvement in Rai's death, he was killed because of evidence posted on social media sites.
As a prominent revolutionary and part of the freedom battle at the time, Bhagat Singh's death was a significant blow. This is what led to his HSRA pledge that would seek vengeance for this horrific incident.
Shivaram Rajguru, Sukhdev Thapar, and Chandrashekhar Azad were among those who conspired to assassinate Scott in order to send a message to the British Raj.
Legacy and Influence of Lala Lajpat Rai on the Indian Independence Movement
Lajpat Rai was a heavyweight veteran leader of the Indian Nationalist Movement and for people across the world who are interested in learning about India's independence. His journalism inspired people and kindled latent patriotism in their hearts.Young men like Bhagat Singh and Chandrasekhar Azad were inspired to give their lives for the liberation of their Motherland.
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Lala Lajpat Rai founded many organizations as well as the national DAV Managing Committee. He also founded the Lakshmi Insurance Company. He was responsible for constructing a building in Karachi that still bears his name.
In 1927, Lajpat Rai formed a trust in his mother's name to create and run a tuberculosis hospital for women. The Gulab Devi Chest Hospital first opened its doors on July 17th, 1934.
Now Pakistan's largest hospital, Gulab Devi Memorial Hospital is performing over 2,000 surgeries each month.
Literary Work by Lala Lajpat Rai
Lala Lajpat Rai was a frequent writer. He contributed to numerous English, Punjabi, Hindi, and Urdu newspapers and magazines in addition to founding Arya Gazette and serving as its publisher. He also wrote several books that have been published.
The Story of My Deportation in 1908.
Arya Samaj in 1915.
The United States of America: A Hindu’s Impression in 1916.
The problem of National Education in India in 1920.
Unhappy India in 1928.
England's Debt to India in 1917.
Autobiographical Writings of Mazzini, Garibaldi, Shivaji, and Shrikrishna.
Lala Lajpat Rai's biography covers his life history, focusing on his career and the people whom he inspired. It also tells about how he is influential to some of our most famous freedom fighters, including Chandrasekhar Azad and Bhagat Singh.
Conclusion
He was a member of the 'Lal Bal Pal' trio during the Indian independence movement. He was dubbed the 'Punjab Kesari,' or 'Lion of Punjab.' He assisted in the establishment of a few schools throughout the region. He was also instrumental in establishing Punjab National Bank and preventing Christian missionaries from gaining custody of children during this time period. Lala Lajpat Rai died after police used deadly force to attack protesters who were opposing the Simon Commission's arrival.
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