Rahimtulla Mahomed Sayani (5 April 1847 – 6 June 1902), was an Indian politician who served as the President of 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 ...

for a term in 1896, succeeding

Surendranath Banerjea Sir Surendranath Banerjee often known as Rashtraguru ( bn, Rāṣṭraguru, Teacher of the Nation; 10 November 18486 August 1925) was Indian nationalist leader during the British Rule. He founded a nationalist organization called the Indian Nati ...

. Rahimtullah M Sayani, born in 1847, belonged to a Khoja Muslim Community, who were the disciples of the

Aga Khan Aga Khan ( fa, آقاخان, ar, آغا خان; also transliterated as ''Aqa Khan'' and ''Agha Khan'') is a title held by the Imām of the Nizari Ismāʿīli Shias. Since 1957, the holder of the title has been the 49th Imām, Prince Shah Karim ...

. Rahimtullah M Sayani was western educated, a Lawyer by profession who achieved public eminence and professional excellence, he was elected as a member of the Bombay Municipal Corporation and was the Sheriff of Bombay in 1885, also elected as President of the Corporation in 1888. He was elected twice to the Bombay Legislative Council and was also elected to the Imperial Legislative Council (1896–1898). He was associated with the Indian National Congress since its inception and was one of the two Indian Muslims who attended its First Session of INC held at Bombay in 1885, where

Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee Womesh Chandra Bannerjee (or Umesh Chandra Banerjee by current English orthography of Bengali names; 29 December 1844 – 21 July 1906) was an Indian barrister. He was a co-founder and the first president of Indian National Congress. Born on 1 ...

was elected as the first President. In the year 1896 he presided over the 12th Annual Session of the Congress held at Calcutta and also the Vendemataram was first sang 1896 at Calcutta . Rahimtullah M Sayani was the second Muslim to serve as president after

Badruddin Tyabji Badruddin Tyabji (10 October 1844 – 19 August 1906) was an Indian lawyer, activist and politician during British Raj. Tyabji was the first Indian to practice as a barrister of the High Court of Bombay who served as the third President of ...

. As Congress president, his address to the party was notable for its detailed look on the British rule's economic and financial aspects. He was a member of the Congress Executive Committee (Indian Congress Committee) formed in 1899 as one of the representatives from Bombay. He died at his residence in

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

on 6 June 1902.

Quotes

"We should endeavour to promote personal intimacy and friendship amongst all the great communities of India, to develop and consolidate sentiments of national growth and unity, to weld them together into one nationality, to effect a moral union amongst them, to remove the taunt that we are not a nation, but only a congeries of races and creeds which have no cohesion in them and to bring about stronger and stronger friendly ties of common nationality." — From the Presidential Address, I.N.C., - Rahimtulla M. Sayani I.N.C. Session, 1896, Calcutta.

References

External links

Indian National Congress Website
Presidents of the Indian National Congress Indian Ismailis 1847 births 1902 deaths Members of the Bombay Legislative Council Politicians from Mumbai Indian National Congress politicians from Maharashtra 20th-century Indian politicians {{Maharashtra-INC-politician-stub