Saifuddin Kitchlew Biography 
Saifuddin Kitchlew was an Indian freedom fighter from Amritsar, Punjab. He was also a barrister, politician and a Muslim nationalist leader, associated with Indian National Congress. He is the first Indian to won Stalin Peace Prize (now known as Lenin Peace Prize) in 1952. He lived during the period, 15 January 1888 – 9 October 1963. He was a prominent leader from Amritsar associated with freedom struggle movement. He was the founder president of the All-India Peace Council and remained President of 4th Congress of All-India Peace Council. He also served as the Vice President of the World Peace Council.
Saifuddin Kitchlew’s name is mostly remembered along with the infamous Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919, whose arrest led to a series of events leading to the killing of hundreds of people at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar. The protest rally was then held following the arrest of Mahatma Gandhi, Saifuddin Kitchlew and Satya Pal, when Rowlatt Act was implemented in March 1919 and these leaders protested it. These three leaders were deported secretly to Dharamsala and on April 13 people from neighbouring villages gathered for Baisakhi Day celebrations, as a sort of peaceful protest and to condemn the arrest.
Saifuddin Kitchlew was born on 15 January 1888 in a Muslim family of Amritsar, Punjab, British India. His father owned a pashmina and saffron trading business. The family originally belonged to a Brahmin family of Baramulla, who later accepted Islam. Kitchlew did his early education from his hometown. He completed B.A. from Cambridge University and a Ph.D. from a German university and also completed Law studies before beginning his profession as a lawyer.
He came into contact with Mahatma Gandhi and plunged into the nationalist movement. He took part in Satyagraha (Non-cooperation) movement and soon left his practice to join the freedom movement. He was associated with All India Khilafat Committee, and series of incidents including his arrest led to Jallianwala Bagh massacre. He was against Muslim league’s demand for a separate nation and strongly opposed the acceptance of the Partition of India when it happened in 1947. He left the Congress and moved closer to the Communist Party of India.
Published: September 30, 2018
Updated: September 30, 2018
