Krishna Kumar Mitra was one of the most famous Indian freedom fighters fought against the rule of the British Empire in India. He was amongst the most prominent leaders of the Brahmo Samaj and actively participated in the Swadeshi Movement. Krishna Kumar Mitra was born in the year 1852 in Baghil village in Mymensingh. He was born to the father Guruprasad Mitra in a conservative Hindu kayastha family. His father was a middle class landholder and an independence activist who conducted an armed revolution in the region village against the British indigo planters. Krishna Kumar Mitra studied at Hardinge Vernacular School at Mymensingh. He was then admitted at the Zilla School and he successfully passed his entrance examination in the year 1870. Mitra acquired the BA degree in the year 1876 from the General Assembly`s Institution. Krishna Kumar Mitra also studied law.
Krishna Kumar Mitra in Indian Freedom Struggle
In the year 1869, Krishna Kumar Mitra was inducted into the Brahmo faith. He was also greatly influenced by the ideals of Aghornath Gupta. Later he became a part of the Indian Association in the year 1876 and was eventually appointed as the joint secretary. Mitra came to Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1879 and taught at AM Basu School and College. Later he became Professor of History and Superintendent. In the year 1908, he resigned from the college after the British Indian government threatened to revoke its accreditation if resigned from the college continued to be related with the Swadeshi Movement. During his studies in college, Krishna Kumar made close association with Shrinath Chanda, Kalishankar Shukul, Heramba Chandra Moitra and Ananda Mohan Bose. He was also closely linked with Surendranath Banerjee. Krishna Kumar Mitra got married to Lilabati Devi in the year 1881.
Krishna Kumar Mitra was associated with the Indian National Congress Party since its inception in the year 1885. But later in 1921, he opposed the Non Cooperation Movement, led by Mahatma Gandhi. In 1883 Krishna Kumar founded a nationalist Bengali weekly titled Sanjibani in the year 1883 and acted as its editor. As a journalist, he boldly advocated for the freedom of the press. Krishna Kumar was against the partition of Bengal (1905 to 1911) and used his periodical to rouse public opinion opposing the partition. He also supported the boycott of foreign products and denied to accept advertisements for foreign goods in his journal Sanjibani.
Krishna Kumar Mitra was arrested by the British Indian Police on 10 December 1908 and was sentenced to imprisonment at the Agra jail for his participation in the swadeshi movement. He was a dedicated social reformer and fought against the caste system, idolatry and social prejudices. Mitra also opposed the repression of women and established the Nari Raksa Samity to work for the protection and rights of women.
