Dadabhai Naoroji was born at Nasik on the 4th of September 1825. He was the son of a Parsi priest. At the age of 27, he became Professor of Mathematics at Elphinstone Institution, Bombay. He left for England at the age of 30 to start a career in Business. In 1855 he became a partner in an important Parsi Commercial Firm in London and later he set up his own commercial house there. On 31st October 1861, an association was founded in the name of “The London Anjuman” and Dr.Dadabhai Naoroji was its patron, founder, and first President.

In 1859 he started a campaign of agitation about injustice in the system of recruiting for the Indian Civil Service. He was the first to work systematically for the intellectual uplift of the Indian public.

In 1862, he founded the influential East Indian Association to educate the English public on Indian affairs. The purpose of the Association was to keep Britain well informed of India’s plight and needs and to secure fair treatment to the Indians. He presented to the British people the “Drain Theory” which put before them the facts and figures illustrating systematic bleeding of the wealth and resources of India. He returned to India in 1874, having been appointed Dewan of Baroda state. But he went back to England in 1886 with the idea of getting into the British Parliament.

He was elected to the Parliament on the 5th of July 1892. He entered as a Liberal into the House of Commons representing the Central Finsbury Constituency. Thus he became the First Indian member of the British Parliament. He was renowned as the founding father of Indian Nationalism.

Dadabhai is considered as one of the founder of the Indian National Congress. He was thrice elected as the President of Congress. He chose the Moderate path to attain freedom during the formative years of the Congress. He trusted the British. He began to despair after experiencing the British political system which increased disillusionment. In 1904, he demanded ‘Swaraj’. The younger generation of nationalist leaders, including Gopala Krishna Gokhale and Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, regard him as their mentor, and he was affectionately hailed as the Grand Old Man of India.

A great life nobly lived, spanning nearly a whole century, great in simplicity, purity, and lofty in its concept of Man’s mission on earth, came to an end on 30th June 1917. Dadabhai passed away at a ripe age of 93.

He once said “Be united, persevere, and achieve self-government, so that the millions now perishing by poverty, famine, and plague may be saved, and India may once more occupy her proud position of yore among the greatest and civilized nations of the world”.

His Writings:

1. His classic study ‘Poverty and Un-British Rule in India’ (1901), played an important in arousing and stimulating economic nationalism in India.
2. He was the founder of the Raft Goftar newspaper in England.
3. He started two religious magazines- Dharma Marg Darshak and Raft Goftar to educate Parsis about their religion.

Compiled By: - Kalapala Hima Deepthi.