Ashwini Kumar Dutta (25 January 1856 – 7 November 1923) was an Indian

educationist Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education also fol ...

, philanthropist, social reformer and an

Indian independence activist The Indian independence movement consisted of efforts by individuals and organizations from a wide spectrum of society to obtain political independence from the British, French and Portuguese rule through the use of many methods. This is a li ...

Early life

Ashwini Kumar Dutta was born in an affluent high class

Bengali Hindu Bengali Hindus () are adherents of Hinduism who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. They make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Assam's Barak Valley ...

Kayastha Kayastha (or Kayasth) denotes a cluster of disparate Indian communities broadly categorised by the regions of the Indian subcontinent in which they were traditionally locatedthe Chitraguptavanshi Kayasthas of North India, the Chandraseniya Ka ...

Bharadwaja Bharadvaja (, ; also spelled Bharadwaja) was one of the revered Vedic sages ( maharishi) in Ancient India. He was a renowned scholar, economist, grammarian and a physician. He is one of the Saptarshis (seven great sages or Maharṣis). His ...

clan Dutta family in Batajore village in the district of

Barisal Barisal ( or ; , ), officially known as Barishal, is a major city that lies on the banks of the Kirtankhola river in south-central Bangladesh. It is the largest city and the administrative headquarter of both Barisal District and Barisal Divi ...

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

, now in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

on 25 January 1856. They are a branch of Dutta family of Bally. His father Brajamohan Dutta was a Munsiff and a Deputy Collector who later became a District Judge. He passed the Entrance examination from

Rangpur Rangpur may refer to: Places In Bangladesh *Rangpur Division, one of the eight administrative divisions of Bangladesh. *Rangpur District, district of Bangladesh in Rangpur Division. *Rangpur, Bangladesh, metropolis and a major city in northern ...

in 1870 and completed his F.A. from Hindu College. He went to

Allahabad Prayagraj (, ; ISO 15919, ISO: ), formerly and colloquially known as Allahabad, is a metropolis in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.The other five cities were: Agra, Kanpur, Kanpur (Cawnpore), Lucknow, Meerut, and Varanasi, Varanasi (Benar ...

to study law. After that, he came back to Bengal and completed his M.A. and B.L. from Krishnagar Government College.

Career

Dutta started his career as a teacher at the Krishnanagar Collegiate School in 1878. In the next year, he joined

Chatra Nandalal Institution Chatra Nandalal Institution, in Serampore, was established in 1874 in Hooghly District, West Bengal, India. It is situated on the bank of the Hooghly River and commands a riverside view of the cantonment town of Barrackpore. Academic affiliati ...

Serampore Serampore (also called Serampur, Srirampur, Srirampore, Shreerampur, Shreerampore, Shrirampur or Shrirampore) is a city in Hooghly district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Srirampore subdivision. It is a part ...

and acted as the Headmaster of the school for seven months. In 1880, he was called to the Bar at

. He built up a lucrative practice and expended his earning in philanthropic activities. At the suggestion of Ramesh Chandra Dutta, the then Magistrate of Barisal, he established the Brojomohun School in the memory of his father, on 27 June 1884. Ashwini Kumar Dutta was elected as a delegate to the second session of

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party, or simply the Congress, is a political parties in India, political party in India with deep roots in most regions of India. Founded on 28 December 1885, it was the first mo ...

, held at Kolkata in 1886. He took the initiative to establish the District Board in Barisal in 1887. He established the ''Bakarganj Hitaishini Sabha'' and a girls' school in the same year. That year he attended the third session of Indian National Congress in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

and spoke on the need for reforms in the Legislative Council. In 1888, he was appointed the Vice-Chairman of Barisal Municipality. In 1889, he established the

Brojomohun College Govt. Brojomohun College, Barishal, commonly known as BM College, is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Bangladesh. It is located in the city of Barishal in south-western Bangladesh. History On June 14, 1889, Ashwini Kumar Dut ...

as a second-grade college. He served as the honorary lecturer of English at the college for 25 years. In 1897, he was appointed the Chairman of Barisal Municipality. In 1898, he was selected amongst the committee that was empowered to draw up a constitution of the Congress. The Partition of Bengal drew him to the Swadeshi movement. He founded the Swadesh Bandhab Samiti to promote the consumption of indigenous products and boycott foreign goods. When the moderates and the extremists parted ways in the Surat session, he attempted a reconciliation between the two groups. In 1908, the government of the newly formed

Eastern Bengal and Assam Eastern Bengal and Assam was a Presidencies and provinces of British India, province of British India between 1905 and 1912. Headquartered in the city of Dacca, it covered territories in what are now Bangladesh, Northeast India and North Bengal, ...

banned the Swadesh Bandhab Samiti 1908 and deported him to the United Provinces where he was interred at the

Lucknow Lucknow () is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the largest city of the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and it is the administrative headquarters of the epon ...

jail. After his release in 1910, he concentrated on sustaining the Brojomohun School and Brojomohun College. He had no other way than to accept government aid. In 1912, he was forced to hand over the management of the school and the college to two different trustee councils. In 1918 he attended the

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

session of the Indian National Congress. He actively undertook relief work after the Barisal cyclone of 1919. In 1921 at the

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

session of the Indian National Congress, he lends the non-violent

Non-Cooperation Movement Non-cooperation movement may refer to: * Non-cooperation movement (1919–1922), during the Indian independence movement, led by Mahatma Gandhi against British rule * Non-cooperation movement (1971), a movement in East Pakistan * Non-cooperatio ...

. Mohandas Gandhi arrived in Barisal that year to show respect to the great leader. In 1922, he joined the striking workers of Assam Bengal Railway and Steamer Company in protest against the atrocities on the workers of tea plantations of Assam.

Works

Aswini Kumar Dutta is the founder of Brojomohan college named after his father. Dutta has written a number of books in

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 w ...

on religion, philosophy, and patriotism. * Bhaktiyoga * Karmayoga * Prem * Durgotsavtattva * Atmapratistha * Bharatgeeti

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dutta, Ashwini Kumar 1856 births 1923 deaths Bengali Hindus 19th-century Bengalis 20th-century Bengalis Bengali-language writers Bengali educators Indian philanthropists People from Patuakhali district Indian social workers Indian social reformers 19th-century Indian educational theorists 20th-century Indian educational theorists Indian educators 19th-century Indian educators 20th-century Indian educators Educators from West Bengal 20th-century Indian writers 20th-century Indian male writers 19th-century Indian male writers Indian non-fiction writers Indian male non-fiction writers 19th-century Indian non-fiction writers 20th-century Indian non-fiction writers Indian religious writers Founders of Indian schools and colleges Indian independence activists from Bengal