Introduction:-
Govind Ballabh Pant was born on 10 September,1887 in Khoont Village near Almora. When he was 18 years old, he started serving as a volunteer at sessions of the Indian National Congress, looking up to Gopalkrishna Gokhale and Madan Mohan Malaviya as his idols. In 1907, he decided to study law, after receiving his degree, he started to practice law in Almora in 1910 and eventually moved to Kashipur, he established an organisation called Prem Sabha, that started working towards served reforms and also saved a school from shutting down due to non payment of taxes to the British government.
Born:- 1887
Died:- 1961
Party:- Indian National Congress
Constituency:- United Provinces
Religion:- Hindu
Mother Tongue:- Hindi
Education:- Graduate
Members:- Advisory Committee on Fundamental Rights, Minorities and Tribal and Excluded Areas.
Profession:- Lawyer Independence Activist
Awards:- Bharat Ratna (1957)
Education:-
Pant studied at Allahabad University and subsequently worked as a lawyer in Kashipur. Here, he began active work against the British Raj in 1914, when he helped a local parishad, village council, in there successful challenge of coolie begar, a law requiring locals to provide free transportation of the luggage of travelling British officials. In 1921, he entered politics and was elected to the Legislative Assembly of the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh.
Political Leadership:-
His service extended to the Constitution Assembly of India. He served as the Chief Minister of the United Provinces in 1937 and later assumed the responsibilities of India’s first Home Minister after Sardar Patel’s demise in 1954. He promoted hindi as the official language and played a vital role in the reorganization of Uttar Pradesh in 1950.
Contribution in National Movement:-
Govind Ballabh Pant joined the Congress in December 1921 and soon joined the non cooperation movement. In 1930, he was imprisoned for organizing a Salt March. He was elected to the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly as the candidate of the Swarajist Party. He also pleaded to the government for lowering agricultural taxes on farmers. During the second World War, Pant tried to conciliate between Gandhi’s fraction, his Advocate supporting the British Crown in their war efforts. In 1942 he was arrested against, this time for signing the Quit India, resolution, and spent three years in Ahmednagar Fortalong with other members of the Congress working committee until March 1945.
Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh:-
Pant took over as the Chief Minister of United Provinces from 1937 to 1939. In 1945, the British Labour government ordered new elections to the Provincial legislatures. The Congress wan majority in the 1946 electictions in the United Provinces and Pant was again the Premier, continuing even after India’s Independence in 1947 till 1954. The Judicious reforms and stable governance in the Uttar Pradesh stabilised the economic condition of the most populous State of India. He played a significant role in developing panchayat system in the state. He also urged farmers to become self reliant and educate their children and strive on a cooperative basis to enhance their life and ways of cultivation.
As a Union Home Minister:-
Pant served as Union Home Minister from 1955 to 1961. Pant was appointed Minister of Home affairs in the Union Cabinet on 10 January 1955 in New Delhi by Jawaharlal Nehru. As Home Minister, his chief achievements was the reorganization of states along linguistic lines. During this tenure as the Home Minister, Pant was awarded the Bharat Ratna on 26 January 1957.
Recognitions:-
Govind Ballabh Pant was awarded the Bharat Ratna in 1957, India’s highest civilian honour. Pant’s legacy as a freedom fighter, statesman and advocate for administrative reforms continues to inspire generations.
Death:-
In 1960, he suffered a heart Attack. His health started deteriorating and he died on 7 March 1961 at the age of 73, from a cerebral stroke. At that time he was still in office as the Home Minister of India.
