Sayyad Agha Haider (also spelt as Syed Agha Hyder) (1876−1947) was a

barrister A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...

and

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. He is known for refusing to pass the death sentence to

Bhagat Singh Bhagat Singh (27 September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was a charismatic Indian revolutionary* * who participated in the mistaken murder of a junior British police officer * * in what was to be retaliation for the death of an Indian nationa ...

, Sukhdev Thapar and

Shivaram Rajguru Shivaram Hari Rajguru (24 August 1907 – 23 March 1931) was an Indian revolutionary from Maharashtra (then Bombay State), known mainly for his involvement in the assassination of a British police officer named John Saunders. He was an active m ...

in the 1930 Lahore conspiracy case. He was a former judge of

Lahore High Court The Lahore High Court () is based in Lahore, Pakistan. It was established as a high court on 21 March 1882. The Lahore High Court has jurisdiction over Punjab (Pakistan). The High Court's principal seat is in Lahore, but there are benches in th ...

. Family Roots Agha Haider had son Zargham Haider who died while he was 12 years old and two daughters Ameer Bano and Shehar Bano. Ameer Bano had only one child, Qudsiya Begum while Shehar Bano had no children. Qudsiya Begum was brought up by Justice Agha Haider and her aunt, Shehar Bano. Qudsiya Begum was married to Shaukat Abbas and they have 6 children- • Late Javed Haider • Tanveer Haider • Shahina Fatima • Shababa Abbas • Rabab Hasan • Naved Haider

Biography

He was born in 1876 in a

Zamindar A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as a ...

family in

Saharanpur Saharanpur is a city and a municipal corporation in Uttar Pradesh, India. It is also the administrative headquarters of Saharanpur district. Saharanpur city's name was given after the Saint Shah Haroon Chishti. Saharanpur is declared as on ...

. In 1904, he started practicing as a lawyer in

Allahabad High Court Allahabad High Court, also known as High Court of Judicature at Allahabad is the high court based in Prayagraj that has jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It was established on 17 March 1866, making it one of the oldest high ...

, where he was later elevated to the bench. He was appointed as the Judge in the

in 1925. He was a member of the Special Tribunal at

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

to try

, Sukhdev,

Rajguru Rajguru, also spelled as Rajyaguru, is an ancient title and surname of the Indian subcontinent which means ''royal priest''. Notable people *Rajguru Aggavamsa Mahathera, Bangladeshi Buddhist *Rajguru Priyo Ratana Mahathera, Buddhist guru *Basava ...

and other Indian revolutionaries for waging war against the

British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...

. He was the only Indian member in the tribunal. The other tribunal members were Justice J. Coldstream, who was the panel chairman and Justice G.C. Hilton. On May 12, 1930, Bhagat Singh and his compatriots were brought to Poonch House in

, where the trial was held. In protest against being handcuffed, Singh and his comrades refused to get down from the police bus, shouting slogans and singing patriotic songs instead. Justice J. Coldstream ordered the police to use force on them in the courtroom, which was objected to by Justice Haider, who refused to sign the day's proceedings and record his dissent. He had objected to the lack of even-handedness in the Lahore Conspiracy Case trial. Justice Agha Haider was removed by the

British Government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

from the tribunal because he questioned the witnesses closely and repeatedly dissociated himself in writing from their orders, unlike the two European judges. While dissenting with British Judges in the Bhagat Singh case, Justice Haider said, ''I am a judge, not a butcher.'' Syed Agha Haider died on February 5, 1947, in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

References

1876 births 1947 deaths People from Saharanpur Indian judges Judges of the Lahore High Court Indian barristers 19th-century Indian lawyers 19th-century Indian judges {{India-law-bio-stub

Biography

See also

References