Chabilal Upadhyaya

Chabilal Upadhyaya
Born	(1882-05-12)12 May 1882 Budhigang (Undivided Darrang) now in Biswanath district, Assam [1]
Died	24 January 1980(1980-01-24) (aged 97) Mazgaon (Gangmouthan)
Nationality	Indian
Other names	Chabilal Upadhyaya, Chabilal Babu
Occupation	Political leader of Assam
Political party	Assam Pradesh Congress Committee

Chabilal Upadhyaya ^[1] (12 May 1882 - 24 January 1980), was the first (selected) president of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee. ^[2] In 1919 Upadhyaya's family settled at Mazgaon (Gangmouthan), Behali Tehsil in present day Biswanath district of Assam. ^[3]

Early Life & Education

• Born on 12 May 1882 in Budhigang (now Biswanath district). His family later moved to Gangmouthan in Behali.
• Had basic schooling before continuing his studies privately in Sanskrit, Assamese, Bengali, Hindi and Nepali.

Political contributions

Chabilal Upadhyaya, ^[4] popularly known as Chabilal Babu, was a prominent leader of the Indian Freedom Movement from Assam. Upadhyaya joined the war of independence.^{[ citation needed ]}

Under his leadership, thirty thousand Nepali speaking people protested against Muhammad Ali Jinnah's proposal at the call of All India Gorkha League .^{[ citation needed ]}

Role in Freedom Movement

• In 18April 1921, he presided over a pivotal Jorhat meeting that merged Assam Association into the newly formed Assam PCC — and became its first selected president.
• Actively led the Non-Cooperation Movement across Assam; his activism resulted in a six-month jail term under British rule.
• Close association with Mahatma Gandhi, including translating his speeches during Gandhi’s 1921 Assam visit.

Social & Educational Contributions

• Established schools and libraries for the Nepali/Gorkha community of Assam — notably the Behali School at Tezpur in 1941.
• Advocated for unity among Assam’s linguistic communities and took a firm stand against proposed territorial divisions post-independence.

The Assam government commemorates him in several ways:

• Built a life‑size statue in Tezpur unveiled by CM Himanta Biswa Sarma in June 2024, honoring his legacy and highlighting his leadership in the Non‑Cooperation Movement.
• Approved a Chabilal Upadhyay Engineering College in Behali, named after him in October 2020.
• Plans are underway to erect another public statue in Guwahati, with site selection by GMDA and family consultation led by CM Sarma.

See also

• Assam Pradesh Congress Committee
• Kuladhar Chaliha
• Indian National Congress
• Biswanath District

References

1. "Chhabilal Upadhyaya (Nepali:छबिलाल उपाध्याय) Indian Gorkha freedom fighter". Indian Gorkhas. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
2. "The Times of India: Latest News India, World & Business News, Cricket & Sports, Bollywood". timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
3. Upreti, Mohan (July 2020). "BABU CHABILAL UPADHYAYA AND INDIA'S FREEDOM STRUGGLE :1920-47". Dissertation: 10.
4. Chabilal Upadhyaya. Good Books Distributors Publishers. 2020.