Sir Albion Rajkumar Banerjee (10 October 1871 – 25 February 1950) was an Indian civil servant and administrator who served as the Diwan of Cochin from 1907 to 1914, 21st

Diwan of Mysore The diwan of Mysore, also spelled dewan of Mysore, synonymously the prime minister of Mysore, was the ''de-facto'' chief executive officer of the government of the Kingdom of Mysore and the prime minister and royal adviser to the Maharaja of My ...

from 1922 to 1926, and as Prime Minister of Kashmir from 1927 to 1929.

Early life and education

Albion Rajkumar Banerjee was born in a

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the ...

Brahmo Bengali Brahmos are those who adhere to Brahmoism, the philosophy of Brahmo Samaj which was founded by Raja Rammohan Roy. A recent publication describes the disproportionate influence of Brahmos on India's development post-19th Century as unpar ...

family in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city i ...

on 10 October 1871 to Sasipada Banerji, His father was a noted social reformer and labour activist from

Baranagar ("City of hogs") , settlement_type = City , image_seal = , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = , pushpin_map = India West Bengal#India3#Asia , pushpin_label_ ...

near

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...

, and Rajkumari Banerji. He studied at the

General Assembly's Institution Scottish Church College is a college affiliated by Calcutta University, India. It offers selective co-educational undergraduate and postgraduate studies and is the oldest continuously running Christian liberal arts and sciences college in ...

and graduated from the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every year, C ...

. Subsequently he earned his master's degree at the

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. One of Oxford's oldest colleges, it was founded around 1263 by John I de Balliol, a landowner from Barnard Castle in County Durham, who provided the ...

. He married Nalini Gupta, daughter of Sir Krishna Govinda Gupta, the 7th Indian to join the

ICS ICS may refer to: Computing * Image Cytometry Standard, a digital multidimensional image file format used in life sciences microscopy * Industrial control system, computer systems and networks used to control industrial plants and infrastructu ...

, who, towards the end of his distinguished career in the civil service, went to the Secretary of State's Council in London.

Career

Magistrate

He cleared the Imperial Civil Service examinations in 1894 and was appointed Assistant Collector and Magistrate in the

Madras Presidency The Madras Presidency, or the Presidency of Fort St. George, also known as Madras Province, was an administrative subdivision (presidency) of British India. At its greatest extent, the presidency included most of southern India, including th ...

Premierships

Kingdom of Cochin

Banerjee was appointed Diwan of

Cochin Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Kerala, the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part ...

in May 1907 and served till 1914. He introduced ''The Cochin State Manual''.

Kingdom of Mysore

Banerjee became a minister (councillor as they were known) in Diwan Sir M. Visvesvaraya's cabinet in 1914. After the resignation of Visvesvaraya as Diwan, Banerjee became the First Councillor in Diwan Sir M. Kantaraj Urs's cabinet. Banerjee would have left

Mysore Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...

service much earlier but ended up as the Diwan of Mysore since Urs resigned owing to ill health. He served as Diwan from 1922 to 1926. He signed the 1924 Cauvery accord with

Kingdom of Kashmir

Banerjee was appointed the first and only prime minister of Kashmir in 1927 to Maharaja Hari Singh. He resigned in 1929 over differences with maharaja on the grounds of his lavish lifestyle sustained by a poor population. His wrote:

Publications

*Indian Affairs (a quarterly journal published from London). *Indian Tangle (Hutchmson—London) *Indian Path-Finder (Kemp Hall Press—Oxford) *Rhythm Of Living (Ryder & Co -London) *Looking Ahead in Wartime (Harmony Press-London) *What is Wrong with India (Kitabistan—Allahabad) *Through an Indian Camera (Bangalore Press)

Honours

Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander ( GCIE) #Knight Commander ( KCIE) #Companion ( CIE) No app ...

(1912) *

Companion of the Order of the Star of India The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria in 1861. The Order includes members of three classes: # Knight Grand Commander ( GCSI) # Knight Commander ( KCSI) # Companion ( CSI) No appointmen ...

(1921) *Knighthood (1925)

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Banerjee, A. R. 1871 births 1950 deaths Indian Civil Service (British India) officers 19th-century Bengalis 20th-century Bengalis Brahmos Politicians from Kolkata Chief Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir (princely state) Companions of the Order of the Indian Empire Companions of the Order of the Star of India Diwans of Cochin Diwans of Mysore Indian Knights Bachelor Knights Bachelor Civil servants from Bristol Scottish Church College alumni University of Calcutta alumni Indian civil servants