Chandra Shekhar Azad | |
---|---|
Born |
Bhabra, Madhya Pradesh, British India |
23 July 1906
Died | 27 February 1931 Allahabad, United Provinces, British India |
(aged 24)
Other names | Azad |
Occupation | Revolutionary leader, freedom fighter, political activist |
Organization | Hindustan Republican Association (later on Hindustan Socialist Republican Association) |
Known for | Indian Independence movement |
Chandra Shekhar Azad ( /t͡ʃʌnd̪ɾʌː ʃeːkʰʌr ɑːzɑːd/; first name also commonly spelt Chandrashekhar and Chandrasekhar; 23 July 1906 – 27 February 1931), popularly known as Azad ("The Free"), was an Indian revolutionary who reorganised the Hindustan Republican Association under its new name of Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA) after the death of its founder, Ram Prasad Bismil, and three other prominent party leaders, Roshan Singh, Rajendra Nath Lahiri and Ashfaqulla Khan.
Azad was born as Chandra Shekhar on 23 July 1906 in Bhabara village, in the present-day Alirajpur district of Madhya Pradesh. His forefathers were from Badarka village near Kanpur (in present-day Unnao District). His mother, Jagrani Devi, was the third wife of Sitaram Tiwari, whose previous wives had died young. After the birth of their first son, Sukhdev, in Badarka, the family moved to Alirajpur State.
His mother wanted her son to be a great Sanskrit scholar and persuaded his father to send him to Kashi Vidyapeeth, Banaras, to study. In December 1921, when Mohandas K. Gandhi launched the Non-Cooperation Movement, Chandra Shekhar, then a 15-year-old student, joined. As a result, he was arrested. On being produced before a magistrate, he gave his name as "Azad" (The Free), his father's name as "Swatantrata" (Independence) and his residence as "Jail". From that day he came to be known as Chandra Shekhar Azad among the people.