A. G. Mehta was a Ugandan member of parliament, barrister and the eldest son of a prominent

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

industrialist. The Honourable A.G. Mehta was elected as the first Asian-Indian mayor of Uganda's capital

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and Ruba ...

in 1968 and was a close colleague of Uganda's first prime minister

Milton Obote Apollo Milton Obote (28 December 1925 – 10 October 2005) was a Ugandan political leader who led Uganda to independence from British colonial rule in 1962. Following the nation's independence, he served as prime minister of Uganda from 1962 to ...

; with whom he jointly fought for the country's independence at the Uganda Constitutional Conference in 1961. He is credited with drafting elements of what would become the first

Constitution of Uganda The Constitution of Uganda is the supreme law of Uganda. The fourth and current constitution was promulgated on 8 October 1995. It sanctions a republican form of government with a powerful President. First constitution (1962–1966) The first co ...

Education

A.G. Mehta was educated as a barrister at

Queen Mary University of London , mottoeng = With united powers , established = 1785 – The London Hospital Medical College1843 – St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical College1882 – Westfield College1887 – East London College/Queen Mary College , type = Public researc ...

, School of Law, in

West London West London is the western part of London, England, north of the River Thames, west of the City of London, and extending to the Greater London boundary. The term is used to differentiate the area from the other parts of London: North London ...

, and was legally permitted to practice law in the United Kingdom, Uganda and Kenya.

Political career

Member of Parliament

As an member of parliament, A.G. Mehta attended the Uganda Constitutional Conference at

Lancaster House Lancaster House (originally known as York House and then Stafford House) is a mansion in the St James's district in the West End of London. It is close to St James's Palace, and much of the site was once part of the palace complex. This ...

in 1961 as part of the Uganda Peoples’ Congress (UPC) delegation alongside

. The conference was also attended by then Governor of Uganda, Sir Frederick Crawford, and the Secretary of State for the Colonies,

Iain Macleod Iain Norman Macleod (11 November 1913 – 20 July 1970) was a British Conservative Party politician and government minister. A playboy and professional bridge player in his twenties, after war service Macleod worked for the Conservative Researc ...

. Recommendations produced by Mehta and other conference attendees resulted in the first Ugandan Constitution, which took effect on 9 October 1962.

Mayor of Kampala

A.G. Mehta was elected as the first Indian mayor of Uganda's capitol city, Kampala, in 1968. One week before his untimely death in 1969, Mehta opened the first exhibition on the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

in the

National Theatre of Uganda The Uganda National Cultural Centre (UNCC) is a Ugandan statutory body that was established by the Uganda National Cultural Centre Act, a 1959 Act of Parliament (amended 1965). Location The headquarters of UNCC are located at the corner of Said ...

, where his opening address, attended by numerous East-African dignitaries, advocated pointedly for the unity of mankind.

Family

A. G. Mehta was born the eldest son of the Mehta family, one of Kampala's longest-standing and most prominent Indian families originally hailing from Porbandar, Gujarat, India. The Mehta family were amongst the first multi-millionaires in

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

with numerous agricultural businesses including the production of

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

and

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...

. Following his death in 1969, Mehta's widow and five surviving children were exiled from Uganda by his former colleague,

Idi Amin Idi Amin Dada Oumee (, ; 16 August 2003) was a Ugandan military officer and politician who served as the third president of Uganda from 1971 to 1979. He ruled as a military dictator and is considered one of the most brutal despots in modern w ...

. Mehta's granddaughter is

Maya Asha McDonald Maya may refer to: Civilizations * Maya peoples, of southern Mexico and northern Central America ** Maya civilization, the historical civilization of the Maya peoples ** Maya language, the languages of the Maya peoples * Maya (Ethiopia), a popul ...

, a British art historian and journalist known best for her 2022 op-ed on Russian President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...

Publications and institutions

A.G. Mehta's role in establishing the first Constitution of Uganda in 1962 is recorded in Ali AlʼAmin Mazrui's 1978 book ''Political Values and the Educated Class in Africa'' published by the

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...

. Images of Mehta's political career can be found in the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

and were digitised by the Endangered Archives Programme.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mehta, A. G. 1969 deaths Mayors of Kampala Ugandan people of Indian descent Alumni of Queen Mary University of London 20th-century Ugandan politicians Uganda People's Congress politicians Members of the Parliament of Uganda 20th-century Ugandan lawyers 1927 births