2405:201:6007:4A42:DD9A:882D:A8B8:DC1B at 17:21, 16 September 2021

2021-09-16T17:21:00Z

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{{short description|Indian writer and lawyer}}
{{More citations needed|date=January 2008}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2018}}

{{Infobox person
| honorific-prefix = [[Sir]]
|caption=
|image=Hari Singh Gour.jpg
|name=Hari Singh Gour
||honorific-suffix = {{postnominals|country=GBR|size=100%|KBE|FRSL}}
|other_names =
|birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1870|11|26}}
|birth_place=[[Sagar, Madhya Pradesh|Sagar]], [[Central Provinces]], [[British India]]
|death_date = {{death date and age|df=yes|1949|12|25|1870|11|26}}
|death_place=
| education = [[Downing College, Cambridge]]<br>[[Trinity College, Dublin]]
| alma_mater =
|movement=
|organization =
|awards =
}}


'''Sir Hari Singh Gour''' {{post-nominals|country=GBR|KBE|FRSL}} (26 November 1870 – 25 December 1949) was a distinguished lawyer, [[jurist]], [[educationist]], [[social reformer]], poet, and novelist. Gour was the First [[Vice-Chancellor]] of the [[University of Delhi]] and [[Nagpur University]], founder and Vice-Chancellor of the [[University of Sagar]], Deputy President of the [[Central Legislative Assembly]] of [[British India]], an Indian Delegate to the [[Joint Parliamentary Committee]], a Member of the Indian Central Committee associated with the [[Royal Commission]] on the [[Indian Constitution]] (popularly known as the [[Simon Commission]]),<ref>{{cite book|author=A. S. Iyengar|title=Role of Press and Indian Freedom Struggle: All Through the Gandhian Era|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pAJDpBQhBlcC&pg=PA67|year=2001|publisher=APH Publishing|isbn=978-81-7648-256-1|pages=67–}}</ref> and a Fellow of the [[Royal Society of Literature]].<ref>[http://dhsgsu.ac.in/founder.html About Hari Singh Gour] ''[[University of Sagar]]''.</ref>
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== Early years ==

Hari Singh Gour was born on 26 November 1870 to a poor family near [[Sagar, Madhya Pradesh|Sagar]], in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The family had to be supported by Hari Singh's eldest brother who provided an allowance of 50 [[rupees]] per month. Hari Singh's father was a [[carpenter]],and a [[farmer]] but the young boy did not have an interest in this trade. At the age of ten, Hari Singh won a scholarship of two [[rupees]] per month which enabled him to attend a night school in [[Sagar, Madhya Pradesh|Sagar]]. Later, with the help of another scholarship he went to [[Jabalpur]] to undertake further studies. Mathematics was his favourite subject and for this he received a special prize. In Jabalpur, he went for his matriculation but he failed in the first time as he was deeply disturbed as someone stole his gold ring which he brought by saving 10 rupees from all his scholarships. But the second time he passed out with good marks. He passed his Intermediate examination from [[Hislop College]], [[Nagpur]], a free church institution, standing first in the whole province.

== Education ==

When he was 18 years old, Hari Singh Gour went to the [[University of Cambridge]] in England where he took [[Moral Sciences]] [[Tripos]] and Law [[Tripos]]. Unfortunately, the young Hari Singh experienced a great deal of racism as a student and throughout his life. He participated in a mathematics competition, of which the results were not declared. Some years after obtaining his [[LL.D.]] he learned that the scholarship which the competition awarded was not given to foreigners, especially "blacks," as Indians were referred to by the British. Since Hari Singh came first in the competition, the scholarship ended up not being awarded to any one. He faced similar treatment in other situations and academic competitions, however he never let this unfair treatment by the British discourage him. Instead, he began to write poetry. In fact, while in England he came to be known in literary circles as a promising poet, becoming acquainted with the likes of [[George Bernard Shaw]]. He wrote a book of poetry entitled ''Stepping Westward and Other Poems'' due to which he became somewhat of a celebrity and was thereby selected a Member of the [[Royal Society of Literature]].

He was admitted as a [[pensioner]] at [[Downing College, Cambridge]] on 5 June 1889. Gour received his BA in 1892; the [[Master of Arts|MA]] in 1896; [[LL.M.]] in 1902; and finally the [[LL.D.]] in 1908.<ref>{{acad|id=GR889HS|name=Gour, Harpasad Singh}}</ref> After his time at [[Cambridge]], he read for the [[D.Litt.]] and [[LL.D.]] at [[Trinity College, Dublin]]. He received an [[honorary degree|honorary]] [[D.Litt.]] from the [[University of Delhi]], where he served as the institution's first [[Vice-Chancellor]].

== Career ==

On his return to India he became a successful lawyer in [[Raipur]]. He was called to the [[bar association|Bar]], [[Inner Temple]] on 26 November 1872. Gour practised in the [[High Courts of India]], including the [[Central Provinces]], [[Calcutta]], and [[Allahabad]]. He wrote two monumental works, ''The Law of Transfer in British India'' and ''The Penal Law of India''. Another book entitled ''Hindu Law Code'' published later added to his reputation as a great jurist. In the [[Central Legislative Assembly]] in 1921, Gour denounced the sequestration and suppression of women. He was also a great [[social reformer]] and was successful in getting an [[Act of Parliament|act]] passed to enable women to be enrolled as lawyers, while his [[Civil Marriage]] [[Bill (proposed law)|Bill]] of 1923 showed him to be a reformer thinking ahead of his time. Gour was not only a [[Progressivism|progressive]] scholar; he demonstrated such forward thinking in his personal life as well. He married Olivia D/o Balwant Singh of Bhandara. Hari Singh Gour was [[knight]]ed in 1925. The first bill for the abolition of untouchability was introduced in 1921 by Hari Singh Gour.

By his determination and industry combined with a gift of oratory, Sir Hari Singh Gour rose to an eminent position in the political scene. He became a Leader of the [[Opposition (parliamentary)|Opposition]] and of the Nationalist Party in the Indian Legislative Assembly from 1921 to 1934. Gour was also President of the [[High Court Bar Association]] in [[Nagpur]] and President of the [[Hindu Association]]. He was an Indian Delegate to the [[Joint Parliamentary Committee]] on the [[Government of India]] [[Bill (proposed law)|Bill]] in 1933.
He was a Member of the [[Constituent Assembly]] that framed India's Constitution.
=== On good governance ===

Being an academic par excellence, Gour focused on the importance of skill Administration and good governance and it could very well be reflected not only in his writings but in his conduct as well. As a lawyer and revenue officer in Jabalpur District Court in 1893, he successfully managed to dispose of 300 pending cases in one year only. His book on Hindu law references 500 books and more than 7,000 cases.

=== Indian Penal Code ===

The [[Indian Penal Code]] was passed by the [[Council of India|Legislative Council of India]] on 6 October 1860 on which date it received the assent of the [[Governor-General]]. Since that time, the [[Indian Penal Code]] had come to be the law of the land, with its amendments and modifications. However, the [[Indian Penal Code]] retained very severe means of [[punishment]]. Sir Hari Singh Gour vehemently opposed such measures, stating:

{{cquote|No civilized country today imposes such heavy sentences as does the [Indian] Penal Code. Heavy sentences have long gone out of fashion in England and the order of sanctity and perfection attaching to the Penal Code should not deter indigenous legislatures to thoroughly revise the sentences, bringing them into conformity with modern, civilized standards.|[[Sir Hari Singh Gour]]|''Legislative Assembly''}}

The [[Indian Penal Code]] was "draconian in its severity with regard to punishment," according to Gour, who firmly believed that [[solitary confinement]] as a form of [[punishment]] under [[Section 73]] of the [[Indian Penal Code]] lacked rational basis. [[Solitary confinement]] had been abolished in England and Gour claimed that it would be in keeping with the civilised culture of India to wipe out this kind of punishment—an inhumane mark ironically left by the British [[colonialists]] themselves in the [[Penal Code]].

=== Age of Consent Bill ===

The 1891 [[1891 Age of Consent Act|Age of Consent]] [[Act of Parliament|Act]] had established that the minimum [[age of consent]] within marriage for girls should be 12 years. In 1922, [[Rai Bahadur Bakshi Sohan Lal]] proposed that the [[age of consent]] should be raised from 12 to 14. This motion was defeated. Then in 1924 Sir Hari Singh Gour brought the [[age of consent]] issue back into the Legislature with a similar proposal to raise the minimum age from 12 to 14 years for girls. After amendments and the appointment of a select committee, Gour's [[Bill (proposed law)|Bill]] was passed to raise the [[age of consent]] within marriage to 13 for girls in 1925.

In March 1928, Gour, who had always been a steadfast proponent of [[age of consent]] bills, appealed to the importance of realising standards of modern [[clinical psychology]] and pointed out the emotional problems of early marriage, such as the incidence of [[polygamy]] as grooms grew up and decided they desired more compatible partners, possible occurrence of suicide and early death, and generally marital unhappiness for both partners.

In 1929 his book titled "Sprit of Buddhism" published and had a great impact on several buddhist countries such as Japan and Sri Lanka. Dr. Gour honoured as Dharm Guru in Japan. It is also been talked that Dr. Ambedkar also got inspired by this book.

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== Legacy ==
[[File:Hari Singh Gour 1976 stamp of India.jpg|thumb|Hari Singh Gour on a 1976 stamp of India]]
Besides being a great lawyer and [[jurist]], Dr. Gour was also a great [[educationist]]. He organised the [[University of Delhi]] as its first [[Vice-Chancellor]] and was Vice-Chancellor of [[Nagpur University]] for two successive terms. Of his most important contributions was the founding of the [[University of Sagar]], now officially known as [[Dr. Hari Singh Gour University]], the oldest university in the state of [[Madhya Pradesh]], in 1946 for which he made a munificent [[donation]]. He started the [[University of Sagar]] with 2 million and gave about two [[crores]] in property as a [[donation]] to the University. He became the first Vice-Chancellor of the [[University of Sagar]] and occupied this position until he died on 25 December 1949. He bequeathed the greater part of his life's savings, a large fortune, to the [[University of Sagar]]. The new campus of this university, laid out on the summit of the [[Patharia Hills]] with a panoramic view of the town and lake, has been built largely through the benefaction of Hari Singh Gour.

He accomplished much, overcoming initial poverty and lasting discrimination. For example, in 1941 Gour was turned away by a hotel in England on account of his race. The [[Indian Post Office|Indian Posts and Telegraphs Department]] issued a commemorative stamp of Dr. Hari Singh Gour on 26 November 1976. Madhya Pradesh Council of science and technology provide Dr. Hari Singh Gour state award in the field of social science.<ref>[http://mpcost.nic.in/Center/123_3_NationalStateAwards.aspx "National & State Awards"]. mpcost.nic.in</ref>

== Selected works ==
* ''The Transfer of Property in British India: Being an Analytical Commentary on the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 as Amended ...'', Published by Thacker, Spink, 1901.
*''The Law of Transfer in British India'', Vol. 1–3 (1902)
*''The Penal Law of India'', Vol. 1–2 (1909)
*''Hindu Code'' (1919)
*''India and the New Constitution'' (1947)
*''Renaissance of India'' (1942)
*''The Spirit of Buddhism'' (1929)
*''His only Love'' (1929)
*''Random Rhymes'' (1892)
*''Facts and Fancies'' (1948)
*''Seven Lives'' (1944)
*''India and the New Constitution'' (1947)
*''Letters from Heaven''
*''Lost Soul''
*''Passing Clouds''

==See also==
{{portal|Poetry}}
*[[University of Sagar]]
*[https://www.janoisko.com/2020/12/blog-post.html डॉ हरी सिंह गौर विद्यालय की स्थापना की कहानी]
*[[Sagar, Madhya Pradesh|Sagar]]

==Further reading==
* ''The Great Indian Patriots'', by P. Rajeswar Rao. Published by Mittal Publications, 1991. v.1. {{ISBN|81-7099-280-X}}. ''Page 251''

==References==
<references/>

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Hari Singh Gour}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100724215157/http://www.bundelkhanddarshan.com/ Bundelkhand Darshan]
*[https://www.janoisko.com/2020/12/blog-post.html डॉ हरी सिंह गौर विद्यालय की स्थापना की कहानी]
*[http://www.dhsgsu.ac.in/ Dr. Hari Singh Gour University: University of Sagar Website]

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gour, Hari Singh}}
[[Category:1870 births]]
[[Category:1949 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian educational theorists]]
[[Category:Indian male poets]]
[[Category:Indian male novelists]]
[[Category:Knights Bachelor]]
[[Category:Indian knights]]
[[Category:People from Sagar, Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:Alumni of Downing College, Cambridge]]
[[Category:Alumni of Trinity College Dublin]]
[[Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Literature]]
[[Category:Members of Central Legislative Assembly of India]]
[[Category:Vice-Chancellors of the University of Delhi]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian novelists]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian novelists]]
[[Category:Poets from Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:Novelists from Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:19th-century British male writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian lawyers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian educational theorists]]
[[Category:Scholars from Madhya Pradesh]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian male writers]]

Hari Singh Gour - Revision history

2405:201:6007:4A42:DD9A:882D:A8B8:DC1B at 17:21, 16 September 2021