Mehr Chand Mahajan
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Justice Mehr Chand Mahajan (1889–1967) was the third Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...
. Prior to that he was the Prime Minister of the state of Jammu and Kashmir during the reign of Maharaja
Hari Singh Maharaja Sir Hari Singh (September 1895 – 26 April 1961) was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (princely state), Jammu and Kashmir. Hari Singh was the son of Amar Singh and Bhotiali Chib. In 1923, followi ...
and played a key role in the accession of the state to
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. He was the
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
nominee on the
Radcliffe Commission Radcliffe or Radcliff may refer to: Places * Radcliffe Line, a border between India and Pakistan United Kingdom * Radcliffe, Greater Manchester ** Radcliffe Tower, the remains of a medieval manor house in the town ** Radcliffe tram stop * Ra ...
that defined the boundaries of India and
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. Justice Mahajan made his name as an accomplished
lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
, a respected
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 ...
, and an influential
politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...
. As a judge he was incisive and forthright and had many leading judgements to his credit.


Early life

Mehr Chand Mahajan was born on 23 December 1889 at Tika
Nagrota Nagrota is a town located in the Jammu district of Jammu and Kashmir in India. It is located on National highway 44 between Jammu city and Udhampur. It is situated on the bank of River Tawi. Nagrota along with Kashmiri Pandit Migrant town of J ...
in the
Kangra district Kangra is the most populous district of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Dharamshala is the administrative headquarters of the district. History Kangra is known for having the oldest serving Royal Dynasty in the world, the Katoch. In 1758 ...
of Punjab,
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(now In Himachal Pradesh). His father, Lala Brij Lal, was an advocate, who later established a reputed legal practice at
Dharmsala Dharamshala (; also spelled Dharamsala) is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh, India. It serves as administrative headquarters of the Kangra district after being relocated from Kangra, a city located away from Dharamshala, in 1855. The ...
.Ravi Rohmetra
Mehr Chand Mahajan as PM of J&K
Daily Excelsior, 23 December 2016.
After completing middle school, Mahajan went to study in the
Government College, Lahore The Government College University, Lahore (colloquially known as GCU), is a public research university located in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Opened as Government College, Lahore, in 1864, it became a university in 2002. Overview In 1864, Gov ...
, graduating in 1910. He enrolled in M.Sc. Chemistry, but switched to law following persuasion from his father. He earned an LL.B. degree in 1912.


Career as a lawyer

Mahajan started his career as a lawyer in 1913 in Dharamsala, where he spent a year practising. He spent the next four years (1914-1918) as a lawyer in
Gurdaspur Gurdaspur is a city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, between the rivers Beas River, Beas and Ravi River, Ravi. It houses the administrative headquarters of Gurdaspur District and is in the geographical centre of the distr ...
. He then practiced law in
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. ...
from 1918 to 1943. During his time there, he served as president of the High Court Bar Association of Lahore (1938 to 1943).


Justice of Punjab High Court

He became a Justice in the pre-independence Punjab High Court. While he was serving there, the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir called him to become his Prime Minister for the negotiations regarding merger with India.


Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir

Mahajan visited Kashmir on invitation of the Maharani in September 1947 and was asked to be the Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir which he accepted. On 15 October 1947, Mahajan was appointed the Prime Minister of Jammu & Kashmir and played a role in the accession of the state to India. Jammu & Kashmir acceded to India in October 1947 and Mahajan thus became the 1st Prime Minister of the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, serving in that post until 5 March 1948.


Chief Justice, Supreme Court of India

Mahajan took office as the third
Chief Justice of India The chief justice of India (IAST: ) is the chief judge of the Supreme Court of India as well as the highest-ranking officer of the Indian Judiciary. The Constitution of India grants power to the president of India to appoint, in consultation w ...
on 4 January 1954. He was the head of India's judicial system for almost a year, until his retirement on 22 December 1954 (mandatory retirement at age 65). Before becoming Chief Justice he served as one of the first Judges of the Supreme Court of independent India from 4 October 1948 to 3 January 1954.


Other positions of note

* Director,
Punjab National Bank Punjab National Bank (abbreviated as PNB) is an Indian public sector bank headquartered in Delhi. The bank was founded in May 1894 and is the second largest government-owned bank in India, both in terms of its business volumes and its network ...
, 1933–43 * Pres. D.A.V. College, Managing Committee, 1938–43 * Fellow and Syndic, Punjab University, 1940–47 * Judge,
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 ...
, 1943 * All India Fruit Products Association Bombay Session, 1945 * Member, R.I.N. Mutiny Commission, 1946 * 1947 Dewan of Jammu and Kashmir State 1947-48 * Judge, East
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
High Court * Punjab Boundary Commission, 1947 * Syndic, East Punjab University, 1947–50 * Constitutional Adviser to His Highness the Maharaja of
Bikaner Bikaner () is a city in the northwest of the state of Rajasthan, India. It is located northwest of the state capital, Jaipur. Bikaner city is the administrative headquarters of Bikaner District and Bikaner division. Formerly the capital of ...
, 1948 * Hon. Degree of LL.D., Punjab University; 1948 * Member, Fruit Development Board, Punjab * Commission on Belgaum (dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra), 1967


References


External links


Mehr Chand Mahajan
Chief justices of India 1889 births 1967 deaths People from Kangra, Himachal Pradesh Chief Ministers of Jammu and Kashmir (princely state) Indian National Congress politicians 20th-century Indian lawyers 20th-century Indian judges People of the 1947 Kashmir conflict {{India-law-bio-stub