PROF.
BARKATULLAH - A
Brief Biography
With a view to perpetuate the name of
a learned scholar and the revolutionary son of the soil amongst the
youth of future generations. Bhopal university was rechristened as
Barkatullah University in 1988, after the Name of Prof.Maulana
Barkatullah Bhopali.
Prof.Barkatullah was born on 7th July 1854n at Itwra
Mohalla Bhopal. He was educated from primary to college level at
Bhopal . Later he went to Bombay and London for higher studies. In
1884, he joined the Muslim institute of Liverpool .He was a
meritorious scholar and mastered seven languages-Arabic, Persian,
Urdu, Turkish, English, German ,and Japanese. Born of parents in
rather indifferent circumstances he had nothing but his own
brilliance and firmness of purpose to help him at school and
colleges. Even so, he topped the list of successful candidates in
most of the examinations for which he appeared, both in India
and England. He became Professor of Urdu at the Tokyo University
Japan.
While in England he came in close contact with Lala
Hardayal and Kunwar Mahendra Pratap, son of the Raja of Hathras. He
became a friend of Afgani Emir and the editor of the Kabul newspaper
Sirejul-ul-Akber'. He founded the “Ghadar” Party (Rebellion party )
in 1873 at san Francisco, Later he become the first prime minister
of the provisional government of India established on December
1,1875 in Kabul with Raja Mahendra Pratap as its President.
Prof.Barkatullah went to several countries of the world with a
mission to politically active the Indian community and to seek
support for the freedom of India from the famous leaders of the time
in those countries. Prominent amongst those were Lenin, Hitler,
Kaiser Wilhelm II, Amir Habibullah khan, Mohammed Resched, and Ghazi
Pasha.
Pt.Jawaharlal Nehru met Prof. Barkatullah in Berlin
and later at the Brussels Conference in 1927 and was highly
impressed with his revolutionary thoughts and deeds. After the
Brussels Congress, he and Raja Mahendra Pratap went to USA to carry
on their mission. A rousing reception was given to them .Prof.
Barkatullah addressed a big gathering which was held in his honor at
Maryvile, California. Barkatullah stood up, uttered a few words, got
choked with emotion. The great orator stood motionless, hundreds of
people; men and women burst into tears and shouted "Maulana Zindabad".
When Prof. Barkatullah came to his senses, he asked Raja Manendra
pratap to address the meeting and dropped into his seat. Prof.
Barkatullah died on the night of September 27, 1927.his body was
taken from San Francisco to Sacramento. Then his Coffin was taken to
Maryville where he was buried in the Muslim Cemetery with the
promise that after the freedom of his country, his body will be
transferred to his own motherland and to Bhopal.
Prof.Barkatullah fought from outside India with his
fiery speeches and revolutionary writing in leading newspaper for
the freedom of his mother country .Even in the face of adversity and
discouragement, Prof.Barkatullah rose to a position of pre-eminence
in more than one sphere of life by sheer forces of merits and hard
work. He did not live to see India free but his contribution did
bring freedom much nearer .The life of such a man has -its lessons
for all of us, and particularly for the rising generations of the
country.
