| Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (1888-1958)
Firoz Bakht, also known as Muhiyuddin Ahmad, was
born in 1888. His parents settled in Calcutta
when he was two years old. Still in his teens,
Muhiyuddin using the pseudonym Abul Kalam Azad
acquired a high reputation for his writings on
religion and literature in the standard Urdu
journals of the time. From 1920 till 1945 Abul
Kalam Azad was in and out of prison a number of
times. He was twice elected President of the
Indian National Congress, the first time in 1923
when he was only thirty-five years old, and the
second time in 1940. He continued as the
President of the Congress till 1946. When India
became independent he was appointed Education
Minister, a position in which he continued till
his death on February 22, 1958. (go to the top)
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| Acharya J B Kripalani (1888-1982)
J. B. Kripalani was born at Hyderabad (Sind) in
1888. From 1912 to 1917 he worked as a Professor
of English and History at Muzaffarpur College in
Bihar. Kripalani first came into contact with
Gandhiji in 1917 during the Champaran Satyagraha
and that proved to be a turning point in his
life. He took part in all the Congress movements
since 1921. He was elected President of the
Indian National Congress in November 1946 and
steered the organisation through the critical
days of the transfer of power. He helped the
Janata Party to victory in 1977 and died soon
thereafter, leaving a distinct mark on India's
public life. (go to the top)
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| Dr Pattabhi Sitaraimayya (1880-1959)
Better known as the historian of the Indian
National Congress Pattabhi was born on December
24, 1880. His association with the Indian
National Congress goes back to his college days.
In 1948 he was elected President of the Jaipur
session of the Indian National Congress. He was
the Governor of Madhya Pradesh from 1952 to 1957.
He passed away on December 17,1959. (go to the top)
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| Purshottam Das Tandon (1882-1961)
Purshottam Das Tandon was born at Allahabad on
August 1, 1882. He joined the Indian National
Congress in 1899, as a student. From 1932 onwards
he was arrested several times for organising
peasant movements through Kisan Sabhas. In 1950
he was elected President of the AICC but resigned
on the eve of the 1952 General Elections on
account of differences with Nehru. Further
recognition of his valuable services to the
nation came in 1961, when the 'Bharat Ratna' was
conferred. He died on July 1, 1961. (go to the top)
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| Uchharangray Navalshankar
Dhebar (1905-1977) U N Dhebar was born
on September 21, 1905 in the hamlet of Gangajala,
eleven miles from Jamnagar. In 1941 Dhebar was
selected by Gandhiji to offer Individual
Satyagraha at Viramgam. In 1955 he was elected
President of the Indian National Congress. He
continued in that position for five years, till
1959. (go to the
top)
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| Indira Gandhi (1917-1984)
Indira Gandhi was born in Allahabad on 19
November 1917. Her election as President of the
Congress in 1959 marked her entry into politics
as an all-India figure. She became the Prime
Minister of India in 1966. On October 31, 1984,
she died when she was brutally sprayed with
bullets by her own bodyguards. (go to the top)
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| Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy (1913
- 1996) Neelam Sanjeeva Reddy, one of the
foremost political leaders from Andhra Pradesh,
was born on May 19, 1913 in the Anantapur
district. Sanjeeva Reddy held various important
positions in the Congress and became a member of
the Andhra Provincial Congress Committee. In
December 1959 he was elected President of the
Indian National Congress and he continued in that
office till May 1962. He addressed the INC
session at Bhavanagar in 1961. Sanjeeva Reddy was
elected at the instance of the Janata Party as
the President of the Republic. He retired in
1981. (go to the
top)
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| Damodaram Sanjivayya (1921
- 1972) Damodaram Sanjivayya was born on February
14, 1921. He was the member of the provisional
parliament 1950-52. He became the chief minister
of Andra Pradesh in 1960-1962. In 1962,
Sanjivayya also became the first dalit leader
from the state to become All India Congress
Committee president. He died on May 8, 1972 (go to the top)
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| Kumaraswami Kamaraj (1903
- 1975) K Kamaraj was born in a backward area of
Tamilnadu on July 15, 1903. He became a member of
the Indian National Congress in 1920. In April
1930, Kamaraj joined the Salt Satyagraha Movement
at Vedaranyam and was sentenced to two years
imprisonment. He became Chief Minister of Madras
in 1954. Kamaraj was elected President, Indian
National Congress, on October 9, 1963. He was
honoured posthumously by the award of Bharat
Ratna. (go to the
top)
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| Siddavanalli Nijalingappa (1902
- 2000) S Nijalingappa was born on December 10,
1902 in a small village in the Bellary district,
Mysore State. He graduated from the Central
College, Bangalore, in 1924, and got his Law
degree from the Law College, Poona, in 1926. He
served INC first as a volunteer, rising to be the
President of the Pradesh Congress Committee and
finally the President of the All India Congress
Committee in 1968. He died on August 9, 2000. (go to the top)
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| C Subramaniam (1910
- 2000) Born at Pollachi in Tamil Nadu in
January, 1910, Subramaniam had his education
at Madras. He presided over the 1969 INC session
at New Delhi. Subramaniam played a key role
in heralding the Green Revolution in India. For
his dedicated services, the Nation bestowed him
its highest award, the "Bharat Ratna"
in 1998. He passed away on November 7, 2000 at
the age of 90. (go to the top)
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| Jagjivan Ram (1908-
1986) Jagjivan Ram was born in Bihar in 1908. In
1937 he was elected to the assembly. The 1940
Satyagraha and the Quit India Movement found in
him an active participant. He became the
president of the divided Congress led by Mrs.
Gandhi. He presided over the INC session in 1969
at Bombay. (go to the top)
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| Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma (1918-1999)
Born in 1918 at Bhopal, he completed his studies
in Law, History and Politics at Cambridge and
Harvard Law School. The University of Cambridge
honoured him with the degree of Doctor of Law. He
presided over the INC Session in 1972 at
Calcutta. This veteran freedom fighter,
distinguished parliamentarian and able
administrator devoted his life to the service of
the nation. (go to the top)
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| Dev Kanta Borooah (1914
- 1997) Dev Kanta Borooah was born on February
22, 1914 at Dibrugarh (Assam). His political
career began as a member of the Constituent
Assembly in 1949-51. He became the Speaker in
1962 and subsequently the Minister for Education
and Co-operation. The mantle of the President of
the Indian National Congress fell on him in 1975.
(go to the
top)
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| Kasu Brahmananda Reddy (1909
- ?) Kasu Brahmananda Reddy was born on 28 July
1909 at Chirumamilli in Guntur District. He
became the Chief Minister of Andra Pradesh on
29th February, 1964 and was in the office till
30th September, 1971. On June 3, 1977 Kasu
Brahmananda Reddy was elected President of the
Indian National Congress. The Brahmananda Reddy
National park has been named after him. (go to the top)
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| Rajiv Gandhi (1944
- 1991) Rajiv Gandhi was born on August 20, 1944
in Bombay. He studied in Doon School, Dehra Dun
and at the University of Cambridge, UK. He was a
pilot with the Indian Airlines till he entered
politics. He became the General Secretary of
Congress (I) in 1983. He presided over the 1984
session in New Delhi. A bomb blast at
Sriperumbudur, Tamilnadu took his life on 21 May
1991. (go to the
top)
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