Birendranath Sasmal (26 October 1881 – 24 November 1934) was a

Barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

and a political leader. He was known as "The Uncrowned King of

Midnapore Medinipur or Midnapore is a city known for its history in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the West Medinipur district. It is situated on the banks of the Kangsabati River (variously known as ''Kasai'' and ''Cossye''). ...

" and "Deshpran" (soul of the nation), because of his love and devotion to the country and for his efforts in the

Swadeshi movement The Swadeshi movement was a self-sufficiency movement that was part of the Indian independence movement and contributed to the development of Indian nationalism. Before the BML Government's decision for the partition of Bengal was made public i ...

He was the principal representative of the

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 ...

. He was instrumental in organizing mass uprisings and protests in the

Midnapore district Midnapore (Pron: mad̪aːniːpur), or sometimes Medinipur, is a former district in the Indian state of West Bengal, headquartered in Midnapore. On 1 January 2002, the district was bifurcated into two separate districts namely Purba Medinipur ...

on behalf of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

and later the

Swaraj Party The Swaraj Party, established as the Congress-Khilafat Swaraj Party, was a political party formed in India on 1 January 1923 after the Gaya annual conference in December 1922. Chauri Chaura The Swaraj Party was formed on 1 January 1923 by Indi ...

. He was also, one of the most influential leaders of the

Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William in Bengal until 1937, later the Bengal Province, was the largest of all three presidencies of British India during Company rule in India, Company rule and later a Provinces o ...

during the freedom struggle. He was essentially a "people's leader". As a

, he represented many of the accused in cases against the

British Raj The British Raj ( ; from Hindustani language, Hindustani , 'reign', 'rule' or 'government') was the colonial rule of the British The Crown, Crown on the Indian subcontinent, * * lasting from 1858 to 1947. * * It is also called Crown rule ...

. He was one of the major associates of

Chittaranjan Das Chittaranjan Das (5 November 1870 – 16 June 1925), popularly called ''Deshbandhu'' (friend of the country), was a Bengali freedom fighter, political activist and lawyer during the Indian Independence Movement and the political guru of Indi ...

and along with Das and others, he was a founding member of the

and later worked as it's principal organizer in

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 ...

. He served as the General Secretary of the party's

branch.

Early life

Birendranath Sasmal was born in an aristocratic

Mahishya Mahishya (IAST: Māhiṣya) is a Bengali Hindu traditionally agrarian caste, and formed the largest caste in undivided Bengal. Mahisyas were, and still are, an extremely diverse caste consisting of all possible classes in terms of material con ...

family at Chandiveti village,

Contai Contai is a coastal and subdivisional city and a municipality in East Medinipur district, West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Contai subdivision. Etymology In the 5th century, during the visit of Faxian, Fa-Hien, Contai was uninh ...

, in the former undivided

. His father was a local

Zamindar A zamindar in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semi-autonomous feudal lord of a ''zamindari'' (feudal estate). The term itself came into use during the Mughal Empire, when Persian was the official language; ''zamindar'' is the ...

, Biswambhar Sasmal and his mother was Anandamoyee Devi. His great grandfather Karunakar Sasmal had purchased rights over a few

taluk A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...

s after the

Permanent Settlement The Permanent Settlement, also known as the Permanent Settlement of Bengal, was an agreement between the East India Company and landlords of Bengal to fix revenues to be raised from land that had far-reaching consequences for both agricultural m ...

of 1793.

Brahmoism Brahmoism is a Hindu religious movement which originated from the mid-19th century Bengali Renaissance, the nascent Indian independence movement. Adherents, known as '' Brahmos'' (singular Brahmo), are mainly of Indian or Bangladeshi origin o ...

had made a deep impact on his family. Few of his family members had also converted to the Brahmo religion prior. He was admitted to the esteemed Contai High School in 1893 and passed the

Entrance Examination In education, an entrance examination or admission examination is an examination that educational institutions conduct to select prospective students. It may be held at any stage of education, from primary to tertiary, even though it is typica ...

in 1900 from the same school; there, the teachings of two nationalistic teachers, Tarak Gopal Ghosh and Sashibhushan Chakraborty greatly influenced him. Subsequently, he got admission into Metropolitan College, Calcutta and then transferred to Ripon College of

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

as he was influenced by

Surendranath Banerjee Sir Surendranath Banerjee (; 10 November 18486 August 1925), often known as Rashtraguru () was an Indian nationalist leader during the British Rule. He founded a nationalist organization called the Indian National Association to bring Hindus an ...

. After finishing his college education he left for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

in 1902 to study law at the

Middle Temple The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known simply as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court entitled to Call to the bar, call their members to the English Bar as barristers, the others being the Inner Temple (with whi ...

; during this time he travelled extensively, visiting the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. During his 5 months stay in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, he was both fascinated and intrigued by the application of the

Democratic ideals Democratic ideals is an expression used to refer to personal qualities or standards of government behavior that are felt to be essential for the continuation of a democratic policy. In the 20th century, T. H. Marshall proposed what he believed to ...

and

principles A principle may relate to a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of beliefs or behavior or a chain of reasoning. They provide a guide for behavior or evaluation. A principle can make values explicit, so t ...

prevalent in the

American society The society of the United States is based on Western culture, and has been developing since long before the United States became a country with its own unique social and cultural characteristics such as American English, dialect, Music of the ...

, for which he had a lifelong deep admiration. One of the inspirations for his desire to pursue

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

as a subject was the fact that at that time, there was an evident scarcity of

lawyers A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as wel ...

willing to stand up for the nationalistic cause or to represent the

revolutionaries A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

. He returned to India in 1904 after becoming a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...

Legal career

After being awarded his degree in law, Sasmal was

called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

at the

in 1904, he returned to

and started his practice as a

at the

Calcutta High Court The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in India. It is located at Esplanade Row West, Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal. It has jurisdiction over the state of West Bengal and the Union Territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. T ...

. Although, he never believed in the principles of armed struggle himself but nevertheless defended revolutionaries in various criminal cases and saved them from the

gallows A gallows (or less precisely scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sa ...

. In 1905, during the protest against the Partition of Bengal he took a leading role in the protests in the

District A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

. In 1906, he represented a young

Khudiram Bose Khudiram Bose (also spelled ''Khudiram Basu'') (3 December 1889 – 11 August 1908) was an Indian nationalist from Bengal Presidency who opposed British rule of India. For his role in the Muzaffarpur Conspiracy Case, along with Prafull ...

as his

Defence counsel In a civil proceeding or criminal prosecution under the common law or under statute, a defendant may raise a defense (or defence) in an effort to avert civil liability or criminal conviction. A defense is put forward by a party to defeat a s ...

, who had been arrested on the charges of distributing

seditious Sedition is overt conduct, such as speech or organization, that tends toward rebellion against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent toward, or insurrection against, establis ...

pamphlets against the

in Midnapore town and managed to exonerate him. During his years of legal practice in

, he had established himself as a competent lawyer and a distinguished member of the

Bar association A bar association is a professional association of lawyers as generally organized in countries following the Anglo-American types of jurisprudence.

. He was known for his knack in both Civil cases, as well as Criminal cases, especially those against the

. He sometimes even travelled to other districts to represent the accused in cases of the nationalistic cause. However early in his career, after a few years of practice he temporarily switched to the Medinipur District Court in 1907, because he felt disconnected from his roots. Using his skills as a lawyer, he interpreted and marked the various oppressive acts passed by the

and led protests against it. This was expressed during his protests against the Bengal village self government act of 1919. He became a member of the District board and

Municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

, and actively engaged in various forms of social welfare and also, played a crucial role during the

floods of 1913, 1920, 1926 and 1933. In 1913, he became the convener of the session of Bengal Provincial Political Conference at

Mymensingh Mymensingh () is a metropolis, metropolitan city and capital of Mymensingh Division, Bangladesh. Located on the bank of the Old Brahmaputra River, Brahmaputra River, about north of the national capital Dhaka, it is a major financial center ...

. Next year, he represented

Medinipur district Midnapore (Pron: mad̪aːniːpur), or sometimes Medinipur, is a former district in the Indian state of West Bengal, headquartered in Midnapore. On 1 January 2002, the district was bifurcated into two separate districts namely Purba Medinipur a ...

at the Bengal Provincial Conference. By 1913, he again resumed his practice at the

, but in 1921, gave up his flourishing and thriving practice and committed himself to the

Non Cooperation movement Non, non or NON can refer to: * ''Non'', a negatory word in French, Italian and Latin People *Non (given name) *Non Boonjumnong (born 1982), Thai amateur boxer * Rena Nōnen (born 1993), Japanese actress who uses the stage name "Non" since July ...

. For his participation, he was arrested along with

Subhas Chandra Bose Subhas Chandra Bose (23 January 1897 – 18 August 1945) was an Indian independence movement, Indian nationalist whose defiance of British raj, British authority in India made him a hero among many Indians, but his wartime alliances with ...

Maulana Azad Abul Kalam Ghulam Muhiyuddin (11 November 188822 February 1958), better known as Maulana Azad and sometimes referred as Abul Kalam Azad, was an Indian politician, writer and activist of the Indian independence movement. A senior leader of t ...

and others and was imprisoned in the Alipore Central Jail. He was once again arrested in 1930, for the leading role he played during the

Civil Disobedience movement Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be called "civil". ...

. Immediately after his release he rushed to

Chittagong Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...

to defend the accused including

Surya Sen Surya Sen, also known as Surya Kumar Sen (22 March 189412 January 1934), was an Indian revolutionary and played a significant role in the Indian independence movement against British rule. He is best known for leading the Chittagong Armoury ...

Pritilata Waddedar Pritilata Waddedar (5 May 1911 – 24 September 1932) was a Bengalis, Bengali Revolutionary nationalism, revolutionary nationalist who was influential in the Indian independence movement, independence movement. After completing her education in ...

and others, in the Chittagong armoury raid case, he managed to acquit 32 revolutionaries and 12 others were deported to the

Andamans The Andaman Islands () are an archipelago, made up of 200 islands, in the northeastern Indian Ocean about southwest off the coasts of Myanmar's Ayeyarwady Region. Together with the Nicobar Islands to their south, the Andamans serve as a mari ...

and 2 received only minor three-year prison sentences. He refused to charge any legal fees for this service. Once again, he acted as the

for the accused in the Douglas Shooting Case by the members of the

Bengal Volunteers Bengal Volunteers Corps was an underground revolutionary group against the British rule of India. The group was functional from its inception in 1928 to the Indian independence. The beginning Subhas Chandra Bose organised a group of voluntee ...

including Pradyot Kumar Bhattacharya and Prabhanshu Sekhar Pal. However, Pradyot Kumar Bhattacharya was hanged due to his brother's betrayal. Furthermore, he

plead In law as practiced in countries that follow the English models, a pleading is a formal written statement of one party's claims or defenses in response to another party's complaint(s) in a civil action. The parties' pleadings in a case define the ...

for the accused members of the

in the case of the murder of the oppressive

District magistrate The district magistrate, also known as the district collector or deputy commissioner, is a career civil servant who serves as the executive head of a district's administration in India. The specific name depends on the state or union territo ...

Bernard E. J Burge, acquitting multiple members in the process and also, saved the young revolutionary, Bhupal Chandra Panda from the imprisonment or being permanently deported to the

Political activities

For political reasons, Midnapore district was proposed to divided into two by

and ''Deshapran'' started protesting against it. He toured the region and organised protest movements. The proposal for partition was withdrawn. He started practising law at

in 1904. In 1913 leaving Calcutta High Court, Birendranath practiced in Midnapore District Court for a few years but later he again joined the High Court. In the High Court, he defended the accused in the Chittagong Armed Robbery case. He was jailed for nine months by

for calling a general strike during the visit of King

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

. During his stay at Presidency Jail he wrote his autobiography named ''Sroter Trina''. He was nationally very well known during the

Indian freedom movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic movement to ...

and had direct correspondences with leaders such as

Motilal Nehru Motilal Nehru (6 May 1861 – 6 February 1931) was an Indian lawyer, activist, and politician affiliated with the Indian National Congress. He served as the Congress President twice, from 1919 to 1920 and from 1928 to 1929. He was a patriarch ...

and

Madan Mohan Malaviya Madan Mohan Malaviya (25 December 1861 — 12 November 1946; ) was an Indian scholar, educational reformer and activist notable for his role in the Indian independence movement. He was president of the Indian National Congress three times and ...

Non-Cooperation Movement (1920)

Sasmal played a leading role in the 1920 Calcutta Session of the National Congress and supported the

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 ...

of 1921. Sasmal, by then, had joined the

Swarajya Party The Swaraj Party, established as the Congress-Khilafat Swaraj Party, was a political party formed in India on 1 January 1923 after the Gaya annual conference in December 1922. Chauri Chaura The Swaraj Party was formed on 1 January 1923 by Indi ...

. He was made Secretary of the Bengal Provincial Congress. During this period he also successfully led the local anti-Union Board agitation in

No-Tax Movement (1920–1922 )

Bengal Village Self Government Act was passed in 1919. According to that law, 227 Union Boards were formed in the district. Birendranath took up the cause of his people, and plunged into Boycott movement. He declared that he would walk on bare feet until the Union Boards were not done away with. On 17 December 1921, 226 Union Boards were abolished and the last one was abolished the next year. In a gathering, with loud cheers, people put shoes on the feet of their leader. Chairman of the Medinipur District Board (1923–1924) In 1923, with a huge majority ''Deshapran'' Birendranath Sasmal was elected

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the Midnapore district Board. Prior to his election,

had been usually politically governed by people from other districts who had previously migrated to

for employment or other reasons, which henceforth changed after his grand victory. He worked diligently for the development of

. He improved the health department, ensured the supply of water, spread education and developed the roads.

Dispensaries A dispensary is an office in a school, hospital, industrial plant, or other organization that dispenses medications, medical supplies, and in some cases even medical and dental treatment. In a traditional dispensary set-up, a pharmacist dispense ...

increased by a large number during his tenure as chairman. He also strengthened the primary education in the district, sanctioning a huge sum of 51,000,000

Rupees Rupee (, ) is the common name for the currencies of India, Mauritius, Nepal, Pakistan, Seychelles, and Sri Lanka, and of former currencies of Afghanistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the United Arab Emirates (as the Gulf rupee), British East Afr ...

, which was an unprecedented amount for education. He was also, instrumental in establishing the innovative ''National Schools'' throughout the district, which were one of a kind.

Labon Satyagraha (1930)

Birendranath's was also involved in the

Civil disobedience Civil disobedience is the active and professed refusal of a citizenship, citizen to obey certain laws, demands, orders, or commands of a government (or any other authority). By some definitions, civil disobedience has to be nonviolent to be cal ...

movement. His followers took active part in organizing people. Satyagrahis came to Narghat and Pichhhaboni to break Salt Law by peaceful means. The Satyagraha assumed the form of a mass movement in the area. Opposition to district division (1932-1933) In 1932, a plan was hatched by the

to separate some bordering regions of the

, and to amalgate them into

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

. Along, with some of the other leading intellectuals and prominent political leaders of the district, ''Deshapran'' Birendranath Sasmal started fierce protests against it. He was held to be the undisputed leader of the district and was regarded as the principal spokesperson regarding its best interests. Apart from the direct protests he also wrote and published numerous articles in the

mainstream media In journalism, mainstream media (MSM) is a term and abbreviation used to refer collectively to the various large Mass media, mass news media that influence many people and both reflect and shape prevailing currents of thought.Noam Chomsky, Choms ...

to bring to light, the unfair move made by the Government. Due to his earnest opposition the

could not succeed in their attempt at separating

from Bengal. Ultimately,

was formed without the

in 1935.

Civil Disobedience Movement, Election to Calcutta Corporation, Central Legislative Assembly (1930–1934)

In 1933, Birendranath was elected to Calcutta Corporation. At the request of Pandit

, he contested in

Central Legislative Assembly The Central Legislative Assembly was the lower house of the Indian Legislature, the legislature of British India. It was created by the Government of India Act 1919, implementing the Montagu–Chelmsford Reforms. It was also sometimes calle ...

election from a two–district seat of

Burdwan Bardhaman (, ), officially Bardhaman Sadar, is a city and municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of Purba Bardhaman district, having become a district capital during the period of British rule. Burdwan, an a ...

division and won it but he breathed his last before the result was announced.

Withdrawal from Politics

In 1924, when Birendranath Sasmal claimed the post of

Chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the Calcutta Corporation, an untoward situation occurred. A battle took place between

and Birendranath Sasmal for the post of the

Calcutta Municipal Corporation Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is the local government of the Indian city of Kolkata, the List of Indian state and union territory capitals, state capital of West Bengal. This civic administrative body administers an area of . Its motto, ' ...

, which then dominated political life of

. Bose was ultimately chosen even though,

had originally proposed to reward the services of Sasmal by offering him the job, he soon backed out. One of them went so far as to comment: ‘Will a keot from

Midnapur Medinipur or Midnapore is a city known for its history in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the West Medinipur district. It is situated on the banks of the Kangsabati River (variously known as ''Kasai'' and ''Cossye'') ...

come and rule in

?’ Sasmal asked his mentor Das two questions at a meeting of the Bengal Provincial Congress Committee (BPCC): '(1) Subhas Bose had been elected member and his brother

Sarat Bose Sarat Chandra Bose (6 September 1889 – 20 February 1950) was an Indian barrister and independence activist. Early life He was born to Janakinath Bose (father) and Prabhabati Devi in Cuttack, Odisha on 6 September 1889. The family origina ...

alderman of the Calcutta Corporation by the

. Why was the BPCC bent on establishing the mastery of one family over the Corporation? (2) In the highest executive post of the

Corporation A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the State (polity), state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as ...

, it was being proposed that he be bypassed and another man appointed. Was this because he was held in contempt for his comparatively low caste?' Das expressed annoyance with the first question and gave an inadequate answer to the second which did not satisfy Sasmal. A newspaper also, reported that he was greeted with derogatory slogans because of his Oriya origin and he was denied the post. Sasmal left the BPCC in thorough disillusionment and displeasure and returned to his law practice and control of local politics in

. His unfortunate departure was subjected to great political debate and discussion during the contemporary times, the general public stance was that

had lost one of its foremost and highly respected leaders of the

Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events in South Asia with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British colonial rule. It lasted until 1947, when the Indian Independence Act 1947 was passed. The first nationalistic ...

to petty internal politics.

Acharya Prafulla Chandra Ray Sir Prafulla Chandra Ray (also spelled Prafulla Chandra Roy; ''Prôphullô Côndrô Rāẏ''; 2 August 1861 – 16 June 1944) was an Indian chemist, educationist, historian, industrialist and philanthropist. He established the first moder ...

publicly expressed his dejection and disgust at this incident.

, even wrote him a letter requesting him to return.

Family

While practicing at the Midnapore District Court, he married Hemantakumari Devi, a

Kashmiri Pandit The Kashmiri Pandits (also known as Kashmiri Brahmins) are a group of Kashmiri Hindus and a part of the larger Saraswat Brahmin community of India. They belong to the Pancha Gauda Brahmin group from the Kashmir Valley, located within the In ...

lady. To make her familiar to the

Bengali language Bengali, also known by its endonym and exonym, endonym Bangla (, , ), is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language belonging to the Indo-Iranian languages, Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family. ...

and culture, he made a library in his home. He had a daughter, Ashrukona and a son, Bimalananda with her.

Death

On 19 November 1934, he was returning from

Medinipur Medinipur or Midnapore is a city known for its history in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the West Medinipur district. It is situated on the banks of the Kangsabati River (variously known as ''Kasai'' and ''Cossye''). ...

after a council election and due to a matter related to his legal practice. Enroute, at

Kharagpur Kharagpur () is a semi- planned urban agglomeration and a major industrial city in the Paschim Medinipur district of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Kharagpur subdivision and the largest city of the district. It is located 1 ...

, he was purposely misinformed by a miscreant that he had lost the recently held national election of the

Burdwan division Burdwan Division is one of the 5 administrative division in the Indian state of West Bengal. The headquarters of the Burdwan division is situated at Chinsurah while the largest city in this division is Asansol. This division is known for its ...

, the sudden and unexpected news had a hugely negative effect on his health, to the extent that he suffered

high blood pressure Hypertension, also known as high blood pressure, is a long-term medical condition in which the blood pressure in the arteries is persistently elevated. High blood pressure usually does not cause symptoms itself. It is, however, a major ri ...

which consequently resulted in a

Brain stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and hemorrhagic, due to bleeding. Both cause parts of the brain to stop ...

. Despite having arranged for him immediate medical attention by his co passengers, his health remained unstable. However, after his arrival at the

Howrah station Howrah railway station (also known as Howrah Junction) is a railway station located in the city of Howrah, of Kolkata Metropolitan Area, West Bengal, India. It is the largest and busiest railway complex in India, as well as one of the busie ...

he received the correct information, that in reality he had won the election. He was escorted to his

house by his well wishers and supporters who had gathered to congratulate him on his victory. Nevertheless, this great mental turmoil had drastically affected his health. Birendranath Sasmal died of a heart attack on 24 November 1934 at the age of 53. As per his last wishes, he was cremated vertically upright, with his head held up towards the sky, at the Keoratola crematorium with great ceremony.

Legacy & Influence

Sasmal was an ardent follower of

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

and had unflinching faith in Non-Violent movement. He thought, "Violence begets violence". Sasmal used to say, "For whom shall I live if not for the people?". He was given the honorific sobriquet ''"Uncrowned king"'' of

. He had bitter experience in politics of

, but he was loved in Kanthi and

Tamluk Tamluk (), is a town and a municipality in the Indian States and territories of India, state of West Bengal. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities of the world and the headquarter ...

. A road in

South 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 fin ...

(Deshparan Sasmal Road) is named after him. Deshapran community development block in Kanthi subdivision is named after Sasmal.

Deshapran Mahavidyalaya Deshapran Mahavidyalaya, established in 2010,.Col ...

, a

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

under

Vidyasagar University Vidyasagar University is a Public university, public research university that was established by an Act of the West Bengal legislature which was notified in the ''Calcutta Gazette'' on 24 June 1981. It is an affiliating university in Paschim Me ...

has been named after him. Also, a

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

near Bajkul has been established in his name. Schools, Clubs, Organisations and streets that bear his name indicate his permanent seat in the heart of people.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sasmal, Birendranath Bengali people 1881 births 1934 deaths Members of the Central Legislative Assembly of India Surendranath College alumni University of Calcutta alumni Surendranath Law College alumni Lawyers in British India Gandhians People from Midnapore Bengali Hindus Indian barristers 19th-century Indian lawyers 20th-century Indian lawyers Members of the Middle Temple Bengali lawyers Bengali activists 20th-century Indian politicians Indian National Congress politicians from West Bengal Indian independence activists from Bengal Bengali zamindars Vidyasagar College alumni